Michael Masecchia, a respected Buffalo schoolteacher and coach who moonlighted as a marijuana grower and trafficker, is suffering from lymphoma, and a federal judge has indefinitely postponed his sentencing date.
Masecchia pleaded guilty last year to felony charges of drug trafficking and unlawful weapons possession. Under sentencing guidelines, he faces a likely prison term of seven to eight years.
The 55-year-old Amherst man was scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 4, but U.S. District Judge John L. Sinatra delayed the proceeding at the request of Masecchia’s attorney, Patrick J. Brown.
“Unfortunately, Mr. Masecchia has been diagnosed with lymphoma, and is in the midst of chemotherapy treatment at Roswell Park Memorial Hospital,” Brown informed the judge in a letter. “His treatment is expected to be ongoing for the remainder of the year.”
Lymphoma is a potentially fatal form of cancer that attacks part of the body’s immune system.
“He knows he will have to face the judge for sentencing in federal court,” Brown told The Buffalo News last week. “Right now, we’re in an indefinite holding pattern while Mike continues his treatment … I think he’s got a long, difficult fight ahead.”
Masecchia, a longtime teacher who taught English at Grover Cleveland High School, is one of several local men targeted in an ongoing federal investigation into suspected organized crime activities. Prosecutors have alleged that Masecchia is an associate of Buffalo's "Mafia" organization.
Eighteen people – including two city high school principals, more than a dozen educators and a National Football League player – have written letters to Sinatra, lauding Masecchia as a dedicated and caring teacher and asking for leniency.
“No one took the time to care about his students like Michael did,” wrote David J. Potter, principal at Buffalo’s Middle Early College High School, who sent his letter on official Buffalo Schools stationery.
Potter and other educators described Masecchia as a teacher and coach who inspired his students, brought in food for students from poor families, stuck up for students who were bullied and spent extra time after school to help refugee kids with their English language skills.
Atlanta Falcons linebacker Steven Means, a former star on the Grover Cleveland football team, recalled that he was “on the brink” of crossing over into a world of criminal activity when Masecchia took him under his wing and “stopped me from making mistakes.”
Means said he may not have had a career in the NFL without the guidance of “Mr. Mike.”
But a much less flattering picture is painted in court documents filed by the U.S. Attorney's office, including the plea agreement that Masecchia signed when he admitted to multiple felony crimes in December.
He admitted he ran a large marijuana growing facility in rural Cattaraugus. Masecchia admitted that he began trafficking in pot around 1999, long before New York and other states took steps toward legalizing the drug. Masecchia admitted that he has distributed more than a ton of marijuana during that time.
Masecchia said he “and others” in the drug trade had help from a crooked federal agent, co-defendant Joseph Bongiovanni. He said Bongiovanni helped him and other drug traffickers to avoid arrest by providing “law enforcement-sensitive information,” including the names of potential cooperating witnesses.
Bongiovanni, formerly of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, denies the allegations.
And Masecchia admitted that he possessed illegal firearms, including a gun that federal agents found under his mattress when they raided his home in 2019.
According to court papers, the items found at the teacher’s home included $27,950 in cash, eight guns, ammunition, three Mason jars of marijuana, various steroids in liquid and tablet form, hypodermic needles, two grams of suspected cocaine, Tylenol with codeine tablets, suspected hashish and four cellphones.
It is difficult to reconcile Masecchia’s criminal activities with his “outstanding service” as an educator and coach, Brown said.
The longtime defense lawyer said Masecchia is one of many clients he has represented who lived exemplary lives in many respects but also engaged in serious criminal activity.
“Over the years, he did go out of his way to help students, including foreign students and students who were being bullied by others,” Brown said. “He really has lived two different lives over the years. I cannot understand it. It is a mystery to me as to how some people can do this."
