A former Pennsylvania sheriff’s deputy allegedly took secret photos of naked prisoners to “humiliate” them and shared the lewd pics with his pals and coworkers, according to authorities.
Ex-Bucks County Deputy Sheriff Ryan Gaffney was hit with a slew of charges on Monday for allegedly secretly snapping photos of naked men while on duty and trying to hide the pervy acts from investigators, Bucks County District Attorney Joe Khan announced at a press conference.
Gaffney, 46, who was fired from the sheriff’s office in June, allegedly took one of the nude photos while executing an arrest warrant at a home in Middletown Township with four other deputies on January 30, Khan told reporters.
The man, who was suffering from a mental health crisis, was found in an upstairs bedroom naked from the waist down, prosecutors said.
While the man tried to pull his pants on at the end of his bed, Gaffney allegedly covered his body-worn camera to obstruct the recording.
However, another deputy’s body-worn camera captured him removing his glove, bringing out his personal cellphone, and pointing his phone camera at the man, Khan detailed.
Later that day, Gaffney showed a photo of the man’s genitalia to female civilian employees at the Bucks County Criminal Justice Center “in jest,” according to a criminal complaint.
The pervy cop then allegedly texted the image to two of his personal contacts, a forensic analysis revealed.
A second nude image uncovered on Gaffney’s phone captured a naked, handcuffed male prisoner lying across a bed on December 26, 2024, authorities said.
The nudes-obsessed Gaffney allegedly sent the image around to 12 different personal contacts on four separate dates, Khan said.
The deputy also allegedly made false and misleading statements during an interview with investigators before signing a written statement denying taking the nude photo of the man suffering a mental health crisis.
He also provided selective screenshots of his active and recently deleted photo libraries to “mislead investigators,” the complaint added.
A court-authorized forensic search of his phone later revealed the lewd photos, Khan said.
“I want to be clear. Mr. Gaffney’s conduct is a disgrace. It is a betrayal of the trust that was placed in him by the Sheriff and by the taxpayers,” Khan said at the press conference.
“The people of Bucks County must be able to trust that those who are sworn to protect them will respect their basic rights and dignity at all times, especially when they are at their most vulnerable,” Khan said.
“When a deputy sheriff breaks the law and then attempts to cover it up by lying about it, it erodes the public trust that thousands of honest public servants work daily to preserve,” Khan added.
Gaffney was charged via summons on Monday with official oppression, unsworn falsification to authorities, possessing an instrument of crime, and obstructing the administration of law or other government function.
“Ryan Gaffney is a veteran and father who has spent his life serving his country and his community through law enforcement,” Gaffney’s attorney, Paul Lang, told People in a statement.
“As is often true in cases involving law enforcement, there is far more to this case than the one-sided narrative that has been presented to the public. Ryan deserves the same presumption of innocence and due process guaranteed to every citizen, and we look forward to presenting the full facts before the court,” Lang added.
The ousted deputy is slated to appear for a preliminary hearing on Aug. 10.
Lang did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
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