Ex-sheriff's deputy convicted in 2016 NFL rape case moved to halfway house
A former Louisiana sheriff's deputy who admitted in 2016 that he raped a woman drugged by serial rapist Darren Sharper – the ex-National Football League champion – has been transferred from federal prison to a halfway house as he approaches the completion of his sentence.
At the culmination of what was once a nationally prominent criminal case, Brandon Licciardi, 40, pleaded guilty in federal and state courthouses in New Orleans to assisting Sharper's efforts during prior years to surreptitiously drug women's drinks with sedatives or anti-anxiety medication so as to rape them.
Licciardi also acknowledged raping a woman whom Sharper had drugged and was subsequently sentenced to 17 years in federal prison.
Licciardi served time at the federal correctional institution in Seagoville, Texas. And on 16 April, he was released into the supervision of the Dallas residential re-entry management office, where he would be either under house arrest or living in a halfway house, a spokesperson for the US bureau of prisons told the Guardian.
The prisons bureau spokesperson declined additional comment, citing privacy, safety and security reasons. But information on the local sex offender registry listed Licciardi's address as a halfway house in New Orleans, which is only about eight miles away from the St Bernard parish, Louisiana, sheriff's office where he used to park.
Licciardi's place of employment was listed as a business to which his father – who for years was a top-ranking St Bernard deputy – has ties.
Many people sentenced to federal prison can become eligible for release after serving about 85% of their punishments, according to government officials. Those sent to a halfway house generally are required to find a job and may be allowed to drive or use a cellphone for employment purposes. And they can also get recreational passes or be moved to confinement in a private residence, all of which are clear indications that they are almost done with their punishments.
A statement from Licciardi's attorney, Brian Capitelli, said, 'Brandon … has served his sentence and is trying to move forward with his life.' The date provided for his release from the custody of the federal prisons bureau was 20 April 2026.
Licciardi was working an off-duty detail when he met and befriended Sharper in 2010, the year after the former ballplayer had helped the New Orleans Saints win their first – and so far only – Super Bowl championship.
According to a summary of the case against him that prosecutors prepared and he signed, Licciardi went to Sharper's condominium in New Orleans in February 2013 to rape a woman who had been drugged by Sharper while she modeled at a party two days before the Super Bowl was played in the city that year.
Licciardi then introduced a woman he knew to Sharper in late 2013 and – the woman having been drugged – took her to a hotel across the street from the former NFL pro's condo. Sharper raped her there, Licciardi indicated in court.
At a party three weeks later, Licciardi introduced a friend – a former Saints cheerleader – to Sharper, who soon drugged that woman and raped her at his condo.
Sharper at his condo that night also raped another woman whom he had drugged. And the two women also endured sexual batteries committed by a friend of Sharper and acquaintance of Licciardi: Erik Nunez, then a steakhouse waiter and self-proclaimed event promoter.
The former cheerleader soon went to police and reported that she had been raped, leading to Sharper's arrest in Los Angeles in early 2014. Licciardi and Nunez, 38, were arrested later and accused of trying to conceal incriminating text messages, photos and videos.
In 2015, Sharper pleaded guilty or no contest in local courts in Louisiana, California, Nevada and Arizona to charges that he drugged and raped – or tried to rape – numerous women in the four states between August 2013 and his arrest. He also pleaded guilty in New Orleans's federal courthouse to helming the drugging and rape conspiracy involving Licciardi and Nunez.
Sharper, 49, remains imprisoned at the federal correctional institution in Elkton, Ohio. As of Tuesday, he had a release date tentatively set for late December 2028. His attorneys more recently argued that he deserved to be re-evaluated for a release prior to that date, maintaining in part that he had taken a number of educational classes during his imprisonment and had proven himself to be 'a model inmate'.
'He also serves as a tutor and has assisted countless adults in getting their' high-school equivalency diplomas, Sharper's attorneys wrote in court.
Licciardi resigned from his deputy job in late 2014 before pleading guilty. New Orleans's Times-Picayune newspaper reported that it took Louisiana's police licensing board until its final meeting of 2023 to permanently revoke the credentials allowing Licciardi to work as a law enforcement officer in the state.
Nunez was released from prison in July 2023 and – as of Tuesday – was listed as working at a construction company while on active probation.
Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organizations. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html
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