A prominent New Jersey doctor hired a man to kill his wife after she threatened to expose the illegal prescription drug operation he ran out of his practice with a motorcycle gang, prosecutors said Tuesday.
Dr. James Kauffman, 68, of Linwood, a small town outside Atlantic City, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder more than five years after his wife, local radio host April Kauffman, was found dead inside their home. An alleged co-conspirator, Ferdinand Augello, 61, also faces first-degree murder charges.
The Atlantic County prosecutor?s office, which investigated the case along with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other agencies, said James Kauffman and Augello presided over an illegal opioid network that was run out of Kauffman?s office through an alliance with the Pagan Outlaw Motorcycle Gang.
The killing took place on the morning of May 10, 2012, officials said. A 911 report was made about an unconscious and unresponsive woman at Kauffman?s house around 11:30 a.m. Kauffman told officers who arrived at the house that he found his 47-year-old wife dead in the master bedroom on the second floor, according to a release.
Police and emergency medical responders found April Kauffman unconscious and lying face down on the floor, with wounds from multiple gunshots, prosecutors said. She was declared dead about 11:45 a.m.
