A Rockaway Township police officer has been offered a plea deal that would send him to state prison for five years, if he admits trying to get a relative's drunken driving ticket dismissed, the Daily Record reports.

An attorney representing Clifton Gauthier, 35, of Sparta, entered a not guilty plea on his behalf Wednesday regarding the alleged 2012 incident, according to the report. Gauthier was indicted in September on charges of official misconduct and witness tampering.

The court set a conference date of Nov. 12, according to the report.

As previously reported by NJ Advance Media, Gauthier, who has since been suspended, is accused of requesting on Feb. 9, 2012 that an arresting state trooper not appear in Rockaway Township Municipal Court in the case of his cousin, Sean Costigan.

Gauthier used "information resulting from his position as a police officer in Rockaway Township" when he telephoned the trooper, according to the indictment.

A complaint signed by Morris County Prosecutor's Detective Daniel Haber said Gauthier's purpose was to "help a relative obtain a dismissal of charges."

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Louis C. Hochman may be reached at lhochman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @LouisCHochman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.