MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A former Arkansas state judge was sentenced to five years in prison for a fraud and briber scheme that went on for seven years.
71-year-old O. Joseph Boeckmann was found guilty of dismissing pending cases in exchange for personal benefits – including sexually related conduct.
He is also found guilty of bribing a witness in an attempt to obstruct an investigation into the crime and has to serve three years of supervised release following his prison sentence.
He will pay a fine of $50,000.
According to his plea agreement, Boeckmann corruptly used his position as a district judge for the First Judicial Circuit of Arkansas to dismiss traffic citations and misdemeanor criminal charges for young men in exchange for acts that he claimed were “community service” from 2009 to 2015.
Documents say the former judge took pictures of the individuals in compromising positions during the “community service” acts.
Boeckman plead guilty in October 2017.
He admitted to telling the victims not to tell anyone about the scheme and to tampering with a witness once he found out he was under investigation.
He is said to have told someone to pay the witness to write a letter taking back statements that were given during the investigation.
You can click here to view the full press release.