BOSTON — Four former Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority track inspectors and a current MBTA employee are facing federal charges for allegedly falsifying track inspection reports on the rapid transit Red Line.
Brian Pfaffinger, 47, of Marshfield, Mass.; Ronald Gamble, 62, of Dorchester; Jensen Vatel, 42, of Brockton; Nathalie Mendez, 53, of New Bedford; and Andy Vicente, 36, of Bridgewater were arrested on Thursday, May 29. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts announced they have been indicted for falsification of records and aiding and abetting in that falsification; and making false statements, and aiding and abetting.
Gamble, Mendez, Vatel, and Vicente are former MBTA track inspectors. Charging documents in the case allege that in September and October 2024, those four filed reports stating they had completed inspections they did not perform. Instead, they allegedly working on private vehicles at an MBTA facility, Cabot Yard, during the periods they said they had conducted the inspections. Those allegations are supported by video surveillance cameras at the facility.
Pfaffinger, who was the supervisor of those four inspectors, allegedly not only knew that the four worked on private vehicles during work hours, but had them work on his vehicle. He also allegedly created supporting documents for a report by Gamble that he knew was false.
The charges of falsifying records and aiding and abetting falsification have a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. The false-statement charges carry a sentence of up to five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000.
The idea of falsified inspections would be a significant concern for any agency, but probably even more so for the MBTA, which is still addressing some of a series of safety directives issued by the Federal Transit Administration in 2022 [see “Federal directives order MBTA …,” News Wire, June 15, 2022]. Among those were several concerns about maintenance-of-way management.
