Pennsylvania judge, public safety director and deputy charged in public corruption probe

PHILADELPHIA — A magisterial district judge, the director of public safety and a deputy constable were indicted Friday on one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and three counts of money laundering following a federal investigation, which included special agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and led by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations, the FBI and the Pennsylvania State Police.

John I. Waltman, 59, of Trevose, Pennsylvania, Robert P. Hoopes, 69, of Doylestown, Pennsylvania, and Bernard T. Rafferty, 62, of Langhorne, Pennsylvania, were named in the indictment. If convicted, the defendants each face a maximum possible sentence of 80 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a $1 million fine, and a $400 special assessment.

According to the indictment, from June 2015 to November 2016, Waltman, Hoopes, and Rafferty conspired to launder funds represented to be proceeds from health care fraud, illegal drug trafficking, and bank fraud. Moreover, from June to August 2016, Waltman, Hoopes, and Rafferty laundered $400,000 in cash, represented to be proceeds from health care fraud and illegal drug trafficking, and took money laundering fees totaling $80,000 in cash.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.