Trolley Driver
Indicted for Fraud, Perjury for Allegedly Staging Phony Assault
BOSTON, Feb. 22,
2018—An MBTA trolley operator has been charged with fraudulently collecting
workers’ compensation and disability insurance after allegedly paying an
associate to attack him on the job in 2016, MBTA Transit Police Chief Kenneth
Green and Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said today.
The Suffolk County
Grand Jury yesterday returned indictments charging THOMAS LUCEY (D.O.B.
10/21/71) of Saugus with two counts of insurance fraud and single counts of
workers’ compensation fraud, misleading a police investigation, and perjury.
“I’m very proud of
my detectives,” Chief Green said. “The perseverance and professionalism
displayed in this case is demonstrative of the daily commitment the Transit
Police have to the public we serve.”
“Effective
investigators follow the evidence wherever it leads,” District Attorney Conley
said. “Here, it led us away from first appearances and toward a staged assault
for financial gain. We allege that this was a deliberate deception and a crime.
Every dollar spent on a fraudulent claim is a dollar that can’t go to someone
who deserved it.”
“I want to express
my sincere gratitude to Chief Green and his detectives for their diligent
pursuit of the facts in this case,” said MBTA General Manager Luis Manuel
Ramirez. “Programs like Workers’ Compensation are in place to benefit
hard working employees with a strong commitment to public service. When
someone abuses the system, we need to call it out, and state very clearly that
such conduct will not be tolerated.”
MBTA Transit
Police responded to Cedar Grove Station on the Mattapan Trolley line shortly
after midnight on Oct. 30, 2016, after a man in dark coveralls wearing a
“Michael Myers” Halloween mask and carrying a plastic pumpkin boarded the
trolley and allegedly attacked Lucey, the operator. Lucey reported that
the assailant pulled him out of the trolley and punched him repeatedly as he
lay on the ground before fleeing the area. Lucey was transported to
Carney Hospital after the assault.
Responding
officers collected the plastic pumpkin left behind by the alleged assailant as
he fled. Finger prints lifted from that pumpkin ultimately led to an
acquaintance of Lucey who cooperated with the investigation. He made statements
to Transit Police that Lucey had paid him $2,000 to take part in the planned
“attack,” which was corroborated by bank records and phone records that showed
communication between the two before and after the assault.
In the aftermath
of the planned assault, Lucey filed paperwork to begin receiving workers’
compensation. On that paperwork, Lucey allegedly made false statements
regarding the assault and signed the document under the pains and penalties of
perjury. He also received long-term disability insurance, citing
post-traumatic stress resulting from the incident.
MBTA Transit
Police detectives investigated the assault and Assistant District Attorneys
Cailin Campbell and David McGowan led the grand jury presentation. Lucey is
represented by Steven Borelli. Arraignment in Suffolk Superior Court is
expected to occur on March 20.
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All defendants are presumed innocent
until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
