By Tiffany Williams –
On March 26, 2025, last Wednesday, the FBI revealed a troubling case of misconduct involving the Stoughton Water Department, as a former employee, Robert J. Bullock, Sr., aged 60 from Brockton, entered a guilty plea for tampering with the town’s vital drinking water supply.
Bullock’s legal troubles began when he was indicted by a federal grand jury on March 5, 2024, bringing to light a serious breach of public trust.
The incident occurred on the evening of November 29, 2022, when Bullock intentionally entered one of the Water Department’s pumping stations. In an alarming act, he disabled the pump responsible for injecting chlorine into the drinking water, thereby jeopardizing the safety of the water supply.
Chlorine plays a crucial role in water treatment; it is the primary disinfectant used to eliminate bacteria, viruses, and other potentially harmful pathogens.
By halting this critical disinfection process, Bullock allowed inadequately treated water to flow into the public system, raising the specter of microbial contamination.
Without chlorine, the once-safe water became a breeding ground for dangerous bacteria, posing significant health risks to the community. Consumption of such contaminated water can lead to severe illnesses, including debilitating diarrhea, vomiting, and fever, as well as more serious conditions like cholera.
Public water systems have a responsibility to ensure that their water remains disinfected at all times, safeguarding the health of consumers from the treatment plant all the way to their taps.
U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper has set Bullock’s sentencing for June 25, 2025. He faces a potential sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison, along with three years of supervised release and a hefty fine of $250,000.