2 suspended Bluffton police employees charged with stealing firearms from department

Following their suspension in early May, one Bluffton police officer and the department’s civilian quartermaster have been indicted on charges of stealing one or more firearms from the town’s police force. The charges relate to a ongoing criminal investigation conducted by state agents into allegations that for months were undisclosed to the public.

Thomas Rauchfuss, 42, was charged Thursday with obstruction of justice for allegedly stealing an unknown number of guns from the Bluffton Police Department in April. He was hired in January 2022 as the town’s quartermaster and fleet manager, a civilian position with responsibilities of maintaining and documenting the department’s equipment and vehicles.

Bonifacio Perez, 39, was charged Thursday with misconduct in office for allegedly helping Rauchfuss steal the firearms. Perez became a sworn officer with the department in 2010 and later assumed the role of public information officer, handling media requests and the department’s public relations. He was promoted to sergeant in 2017 after a history of positive performance reviews, becoming responsible for overseeing officers and training new recruits.

Indictment documents for Rauchfuss claim he stole the firearms “to convert to his own use” and failed to properly document the weapons.

Upon learning of the allegations May 8, Chief Joseph Babkiewicz placed four of his employees on paid administrative leave , including Rauchfuss and Perez. Two agencies launched related investigations in the following days: The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office conducted a short internal probe based on a “policy violation,” while agents at the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division led the still-active criminal investigation that eventually resulted in Thursday’s indictments.

The department announced in mid-July that it had fired Rauchfuss due to the internal affairs investigation, which ended in late July, according to reporting from The Post and Courier. It was not clear as of Thursday afternoon if Perez had been terminated as well.

A disciplinary action form for Rauchfuss says the quartermaster was reprimanded by the department in September 2022 for “lack of consideration for a fellow human being,” with highlights made to the form’s guidelines on violent and profane language as well as threatening or coercing other employees. The document, obtained by The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette through a Freedom of Information Act request, does not include specifics of the alleged misconduct. Rauchfuss was required to take part in a verbal counseling program as a result of the disciplinary process, the form says.

Two other officers with the department — Capt. Scott Chandler and Sgt. Matthew Ferrelli — were also placed on paid leave when the investigations began but were not part of Thursday’s indictments. It was unclear as of Thursday afternoon whether they remained on leave.

Rauchfuss and Perez were directly indicted by a grand jury following “examinations” by the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office Public Integrity Unit, which investigates officer-involved shootings around the state as well as alleged corruption in law enforcement.

Following a direct indictment, defendants are usually summoned to General Sessions Court for a bond hearing, according to a Thursday press release from the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office. Those proceedings had not yet been scheduled.

Babkiewicz and a spokesperson for the Town of Bluffton could not immediately be reached Thursday afternoon for questions related to the indictments.