BOSTON – A chilling case of sabotage within the public trust was concluded today as former Stoughton Water Department employee, Robert J. Bullock, Sr., 60, of Brockton, faced a federal court sentence for tampering with the Stoughton drinking water supply.
In a stunning reversal from the government’s recommendation, U.S. District Court Chief Judge Denise J. Casper sentenced Bullock to a period of time-served—approximately one day—and followed by three years of supervised release. The Department of Justice (DOJ) had initially recommended a sentence of one year and one day in prison.
Bullock pleaded guilty to one count of tampering with a water system on March 12, 2025. He was indicted by a federal grand jury on March 6, 2024, following his arrest on the evening of November 29, 2022.
On that fateful night, Bullock, a former Water Department employee, breached protocol and entered one of the department’s pumping stations to manually turn off the pump responsible for chlorinating the drinking water. His actions led to insufficiently disinfected water being introduced into the system, posing a significant health risk to the community.
The investigation was a collaborative effort between federal agencies and local law enforcement. United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) Boston Division; and Kathryn Rivera, Acting Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Criminal Investigation Division in Boston, announced the sentence today. Assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Stoughton and Brockton Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Tolkoff of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case.
This incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of public water systems’ integrity and the consequences faced by those who tamper with such critical infrastructure.
RELATED: Stoughton Water Employee Bullock Sentenced for Water Tampering
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Key Facts
- State: Massachusetts
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Public Corruption|Environmental Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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