An Air Force Academy cadet who was arrested for selling ecstasy was sentenced Wednesday to 10 months in military prison and dismissed from the service.

Matthew Garchow, 20, from Bakersfield, Calif., will serve his time at the military prison at Fort Leavenworth, Kan. The dismissal is equal to a dishonorable discharge.

Garchow, a junior, pleaded guilty and has agreed to cooperate with authorities in exchange for a lighter sentence. He could have gotten 25 years in prison.

During tearful testimony, his father and mother described a promising young man who had wanted to go to the academy since he was 13. They said that he had made mistakes but would rebound.

But the prosecution emphasized that Garchow did research on ecstasy before using it and that he was arrested for selling drugs to an undercover police officer 10 days after his first court appearance for drug use.

Garchow is the fifth Air Force cadet recently court-martialed for drug-related charges. All have received prison terms. Two more have been charged, one suspected of using drugs resigned, and at least six cadets are still under investigation.

Garchow told the judge that he used ecstasy four times from May 2000 to October 2000 at parties and clubs off base. Last November, he said that he snorted Ketamine - an animal tranquilizer - at his girlfriend's house in Boulder.

Academy officials admitted that drug use is a widespread problem among the 4,400-member cadet student body.

Previous Stories:

• April 4, 2001: Another Air Force Cadet Implicated In Drug Scandal
• February 16, 2001: Air Force Cadet Pleads Not Guilty In Internet Sex Case