Inspectors charged with faking gas pipeline safety tests in New York
(UI) — Federal prosecutors have charged two pipeline safety inspectors with wire fraud, alleging they fabricated hundreds of inspection reports for natural gas pipelines installed across New York City and Westchester County.
According to the indictment unsealed Wednesday, Liam Treibert, 30, of Wendell, North Carolina, and Michael Vasconcellos, 44, of Mahopac, New York, submitted fraudulent inspection records to a regulated utility between 2016 and 2023. Prosecutors said their actions deceived the company into believing critical welds had been tested when, in fact, they had not.
“As alleged, Liam Treibert and Michael Vasconcellos violated the trust placed in them to ensure the safety of natural gas pipelines that were being installed throughout New York City and Westchester County,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. “They lied about having performed hundreds of inspections and then covered up those lies with fraudulent paperwork. Their actions put the lives of New Yorkers at risk.”
New York State Inspector General Lucy Lang said the arrests reflect “unwavering commitment to protecting critical infrastructure and pursuing accountability on behalf of all New Yorkers.”
The indictment alleges the men engaged in a practice known as “radaring,” in which radiographic images of a single weld were reused and passed off as inspections of additional welds. These falsified tests were submitted as invoices, which the utility paid.
Federal prosecutors said the scheme compromised safety by bypassing inspections designed to detect defects that could lead to gas leaks or explosions.
Treibert and Vasconcellos are each charged with one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Both men were arrested on Wednesday and are scheduled to appear in federal courts in North Carolina and New York.
The case is being handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in White Plains with assistance from the New York State Inspector General’s Office.
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