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5 facing federal charges for falsifying MBTA track inspection records
Four former MBTA workers are accused of falsifying track inspection records, while some worked on private cars during work hours.
Four former MBTA employees and one current employee were arrested and charged Thursday for allegedly falsifying Red Line track inspection reports following an investigation into Cabot Yard in South Boston, prosecutors said.
Brian Pfaffinger, of Marshfield, Ronald Gamble, of Dorchester, Jensen Vatel, of Brockton, Nathalie Mendes, of New Bedford, and Andy Vicente, of Bridgewater, are each facing federal charges of falsification of records, aiding and abetting; and false statements, aiding and abetting, prosecutors announced Thursday.
The federal charges come as the MBTA began an investigation into employees who were accused of misusing T resources at Cabot Yard, a maintenance yard where Red Line trains are stored. The MBTA said last fall that employees were working on private vehicles during working hours.
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All five of the employees facing federal charges were arrested and appeared in court Thursday, U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Leah Foley said. Gamble, Vatel, Mandes, and Vicente, who are former MBTA track inspectors, are accused of not completing track inspection for the Red Line and falsifying records, showing they completed inspections.
Six employees were fired last year in connection to the Cabot Yard investigation, including the four former employees facing charges, the MBTA said.
“We are taking these allegations very seriously, as we have an obligation to the public and to our workforce to ensure that every employee meets the highest standards of conduct,” the MBTA said in a statement.
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Instead of completing inspections, Gamble, Vatel, Mandes, and Vicente were allegedly inside Cabot Yard, according to prosecutors. Gamble, Vatel, and Vicente are alleged to have worked on private vehicles during work hours.
Pfaffinger was the supervisor of the four and allegedly knew that the employees worked on private cars, prosecutors said. He even had them work on his own private vehicle, Foley’s office alleges.
Pfaffinger was disciplined earlier this year, the MBTA confirmed, and is currently on leave. Further discipline following the federal charges is being reviewed, the agency said.
A spokesperson for the MBTA thanked the U.S. Attorney’s office and said the Cabot Yard workers’ “actions do not reflect the values of the MBTA, and they will not impact the improvements we continue to make across the system.”
“As a public agency, it is our responsibility to be good stewards of public resources and deliver safe and reliable service to transit users,” the spokesperson said. “That’s why General Manager Phil Eng took immediate action to hold these employees accountable when this misconduct came to light.”
At the hearing Thursday, all five pleaded not guilty and were released on their own personal recognizance, The Boston Globe reported.
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A lawyer for Gamble said that “the indictment seems like swatting a fly with a sledgehammer, and Mr. Gamble looks forward to proving his innocence,” the Globe reported, while a lawyer for Mendes said he would review the evidence and “give Ms. Mendes a strong defense.”
Lawyers for Vicente, Vatel, and Pfaffinger declined to comment to the Globe.
The falsification of records and aiding and abetting charge carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, thre eyears of supervised release, and an up to $250,000 fine. The false statements and aiding and abetting charge charges could amount to up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a maximum fine of $250,000, prosecutors said.
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