Former Hatboro Cop Waives Arraignment, Pleads Not Guilty

A former decorated narcotics officer facing charges related to cash, drugs and gun thefts and an alleged mishandling of drug informants, has waived his arraignment in county court, according to The Times Herald.

John Becker, 42, of Horsham, who had worked for 17 years for the  until a multi-agency, 16-month-long investigation that began in January 2011 led to his , and earlier this month, has pleaded not guilty to the charges, according to the article. 

Becker, who is free on $10,000 bail, was previously scheduled to be arraigned on July 5. By waiving the need for the arraignment, Becker's case will instead move forward with a pre-trail conference and potentially trial. 

A former detective sergeant for Hatboro Police, Becker also served on the Montgomery County Drug Task Force. 

According to the criminal complaint that the Attorney General's Office filed against Becker, the veteran cop is alleged to have stolen 10 firearms from the Hatboro Police Department's evidence locker, as well as various drugs and more than $18,000 in cash during a roughly six-month time period from 2010 through early 2011.

He is also accused of using informants - under the guise of furthering drug investigations - to buy OxyContin, Percocet and cocaine for his own personal use from December 2009 until January 2011. 

Becker told authorities that he had been prescribed OxyContin in 2003 to help combat chronic pain.

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