TOP-COP POP BAILS OUT HIS POT-BUST SON

[Cure20]

Beleagured former NYPD Deputy Commissioner John Timoney bailed his son out of jail via speakerphone in an Albany courtroom yesterday -- coming to the aid of the second of his two children to be arrested on drug charges.

Listening as her dad's no-nonsense voice echoed through the court was the daughter Timoney arrested and rescued from heroin abuse a dozen years ago.

An emotional Christine Timoney, 27, was there to support her brother, Sean, 25, who was arrested Tuesday night in a Rockland County hotel after he and an associate allegedly handed a federal drug agent $450,000 as a down payment for 400 pounds of marijuana.

Also in court for Sean was his mother Noreen, Christine's fiance and an uncle.

But Sean's father was in Miami, where he is chief of police.

He felt it would be inappropriate for him to appear in court because it might suggest he was using his position to influence the outcome of the case, said a source close to the family.

He opted to support his son from afar -- by providing a top lawyer, his longtime friend Ed Hayes, and by putting up his $500,000 Miami condo as bond.

Sean drifted away from his family years ago, sources said.

But his father never gave up on him and won't give up on him now, a former NYPD chief and close friend of the family told The Post.

The friend recalled when Christine was in her mid-teens and addicted to heroin.

"John saved Christine numerous times, getting her to hospitals or rehab. His response never wavered. He always responded to help her, relapse after relapse.

"It became more debilitating and frustrating for him to respond, but time after time, he went to her side. Fatherly love was much stronger than his tough law-enforcement image.

"He knew, or hoped, that age would rescue her. But he had to keep her alive through her teens to get there," the friend said.

Today, Christine is doing well. She moved to Brooklyn last year after graduating from college in Florida. She's engaged to be married and close to her parents.

Sean enrolled in college in Philadelphia in 1999, when his father was police chief there, but he dropped out after two years.

He remained behind in Philly when his father's career took the rest of his family to Florida, a family source said.

"Sean distanced himself from John . . . despite John's attempts to heal any rifts," the friend said.

But "just as he kept hope alive with Christine, he is immersed in helping Sean, despite their differences or distance," he said.

Timoney refused to discuss his son's arrest. Christine and Noreen also refused to comment.

But Noreen Timoney had kind words -- and a big hug -- for her son when he walked out of jail late yesterday afternoon.

Under the terms of his release, Sean will be returning to Philadelphia, where he'll be required to hold a job and report regularly to a federal probation officer.

The court also ordered him to surrender his handgun. Both he and his co-defendant, Jae Seu, 22, of Glenside, Pa., are charged with conspiracy to possess and distribute marijuana and face up to 40 years behind bars and a fine of up to $2 million if convicted.

[Dr. Dro]

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