Hey, there! Log in / Register

Two more retired state troopers indicted for overtime abuse; one allegedly filed for pay while running his own private security firm

The US Attorney's office reports the arrest of another two state troopers on federal fraud charges.

Lt. Daniel Griffin of Belmont was charged with an escalating series of crimes related to the ongoing overtime scandal at State Police: He often put in for State Police pay while working at his private-security firm and hid his income to obtain financial aid for his kids at a private school, then, when investigators started nosing around State Police headquarters in Framingham, he helped shred and burn potentially incriminating documents and told his superiors, oops, the documents got lost during an office move, the US Attorney's office charges - adding he also submitted bogus tax returns to the IRS.

Griffin was indicted on one count of conspiracy, one count of theft concerning a federal program, eight counts of wire fraud and 11 counts of assisting in filing false tax returns, the US Attorney's office reports.

Sgt. William Robertson of Westboro was charged with one count of conspiracy, one count of theft concerning a federal program and four counts of wire fraud.

Both of the now retired troopers worked out of State Police headquarters in a traffic-enforcement program.

Both were arrested this morning and face arraignment in US District Court in Boston this afternoon on the charges, which include submitting their own fake overtime requests and working with at least three other troopers who the feds say also put in for hours they didn't work.

According to the indictment, Griffin supplemented his State Police salary of $224,000 or so a year by running KnightPro, a firm that provided secure shipment of artworks across the country and security for events at colleges across Massachusetts. Running such a complex concern was a full-time job, as is working as a State Trooper; Griffin solved the dilemma by doing KnightPro work while he was getting paid for State Police work - both regular pay and overtime - the indictment charges.

This was in addition to the work Griffin did as a landlord and as owner or part-owner of several Boston-area gyms, the indictment claims.

But his income from all these sources wasn't enough, the feds charge. Between 2013 and 2019, he had two children enrolled in a private school in Belmont that charged $39,600 in tuition in 2013, which increased to $50,800 in 2019. By submitting fake tax returns that omitted his KnightPro and other non-State Police income, and by concealing the fact he owned a second home on the Cape, Griffin became eligible for financial aid, which over the six years totaled $177,000.

In 2017, the indictment alleges, Griffin really got into the role of a poor state trooper, dashing off a series of complaints to the school when one of his kids only got about $29,000 knocked off the tuition:

Griffin sent a series of emails to the Private School financial aid office complaining he was being penalized for being honest about his financial means; that other families were abusing the system by "hid[ing] monies ... and mak[ing] significant cash 'under the table' "; and that he would have to withdraw his child from the Private School unless further financial aid was given.

The indictment continues that the school kicked in another $4,000 in aid that year.

Innocent, etc.

Complete indictment (3.6M PDF).

Neighborhoods: 
Topics: 
Free tagging: 


Ad:


Like the job UHub is doing? Consider a contribution. Thanks!

Comments

Why would anyone want more oversight, greater accountability, and less public funds spent on police?

I wonder if Trooper Griffin votes for the party claiming to be for “small government” and “against taxpayer waste”? I wonder what the grand total of “government handouts” have been received by State Police officers via this culture of creative time card accounting we see again and again?

up
Voting closed 0

These people out there lives on the line for us every day. What’s a little self help? Never harmed any one.

up
Voting closed 0

Loser.

up
Voting closed 0

The most dangerous jobs in the US: 1 to 16

Logging workers
Fishers and related fishing workers
Aircraft pilots and flight engineers
Roofers
Refuse and recyclable material collectors
Driver/sales workers and truck drivers
Farmers, ranchers and other agricultural managers
Structural iron and steel workers
First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers
First-line supervisors of landscaping, lawn service and groundskeeping workers
Electrical power-line installers and repairers
Grounds maintenance workers
Miscellaneous agricultural workers
Helpers, construction trades
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers and repairers
Police and sheriff's patrol officers

https://www.ajc.com/business/employment/these-are-the-most-dangerous-job...

up
Voting closed 0

But how many of those jobs are "dangerous" (or you wouldn't want to do because they are dangerous) because of accidents, and which ones are dangerous because you might have to confront another human being who wants to harm you? (pizza delivery drivers, cops, cab drivers etc)

I wouldn't want to be a pilot because I'm scared of being in charge of an airplane. I'm not afraid of anything else on that list thoug except for maybe going up on a power line or tall building?

(I also think the poster was joking)

up
Voting closed 0

It was supposed to be a haha funny funny. But my sense of humor has been infected by Covid. Hardeehar har. Yo soy loco.

up
Voting closed 0

I didn't get it. And at this point, for even the most obviously sarcastic comment that could be made to any given UHub story, I'm fairly certain there's at least one regular on here who would make such a comment, but seriously.

up
Voting closed 0

The interesting thing about that list is how many of the positions are supervisors. There are probably many situations in which an employee tasked with doing a job finds it unsafe, etc and calls their boss who has not choice but to do it themselves.

In that regard that have something in common with cops: They are the people called to deal with a dangerous problem who do not have the ability to call someone else.

Meanwhile the cops that are paid the highest seem to be those who rack up the big bucks racking up the OT doing construction details and other duties that don't involve responding to calls.

up
Voting closed 0

Standing around a construction site looking at their phone while construction workers bust their ass for a fraction of the cops pay? What a dangerous job!

up
Voting closed 0

A fairly large fraction these days

up
Voting closed 0

A fraction? How much do you think people in the trades make?

up
Voting closed 0

In Boston anyway.

up
Voting closed 0

Yup!

up
Voting closed 0

All they had to do to lawfully earn the overtime pay was be physically present where they were supposed to be, when they were supposed to be there. They chose to not do so, but pretend to be to collect the money. That's a crime. Covering up the crime is also crime.

They stole OUR tax dollars. OUR money. If you are cool with that, would it be alright if I came over and relieved you of your wallet? It's just a little self help on my part.

up
Voting closed 0

Baker refused to sign the big police reform bill today and threatened a veto. Among his "concerns" was the creation of an oversight board which was comprised by a majority of civilians instead of sworn officers.

He is OK with the board in concept but wanted officers to provide the oversight of other officers. It's a system which clearly works flawlessly.

up
Voting closed 0

Republicans are in favor of cops stealing money and shooting minorities. Their words and actions clearly demonstrate this.

up
Voting closed 0

Why the fuck else would they become cops?

up
Voting closed 0

who brought this case - it was the feds. Charlie has no interest in police reform and Maura Healey would rather sign onto meaningless amicus briefs aimed at owning Trump than focus on the many issues of public corruption in this space.

up
Voting closed 0

...brought this case - it was the feds...

It might have originated with feds. It might have originated with state.

Sometimes the state is glad for feds to take lead on prosecution (if there are grounds to do so) - for a variety of reasons (some for more effective prosecution, some for deniability). Also, the trooper's state police work was mostly one special unit or program - if that was a federally-funded program, they would definitely take lead.

up
Voting closed 0

For anybody who wants a closer look at that system, there's an excellent documentary miniseries on Netflix:

up
Voting closed 0

These are the same people who love to rant about how all the black and brown people are milking the system all while bleeding it dry themselves.

This level of greed is absurd. I hope they get hefty sentences to deter the others. But we all know nothing serious will come of any of this.

up
Voting closed 0

This is my immediate thought when ever another on of these crooked Staties is busted. These are the same people who look at people from my community like leeches who are just lazy and looking for handouts. They say it's the immigrants who are bleeding the system dry, and say poor people need to just lift themselves by their bootstraps to get ahead. Meanwhile they grew up in privileged communities with access to privileged jobs, that they in turn use to steal and milk the system. This is why police can't police themselves.

up
Voting closed 0

If you have any unsolved racist graffiti crimes around town, I'd bet $1000 this guy's kid did it. No way he's anything other than a entitled, racist Trumper with a father like this.

up
Voting closed 0

There are good cops (that is most of them) and a few bad ones. This guy is truly one of the bad ones.

up
Voting closed 0

If you're a good cop who looks the other way when bad cops are bad, you're a bad cop.

up
Voting closed 0

They were training officers. When training officers are the bad ones, what does that get you?

up
Voting closed 0

I'm happy to offer my sincere praise and thanks when MSP or BPD catch the bad guys.

But this is BS. I'm very glad the feds got them.

up
Voting closed 0

There was a time when civil servants did not make a ton of money, but got a lot of benefits, security and retirement.

Now...it appears they get the benefits, security, retirement...AND THE MONEY!

Why can't this be fixed?

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/11/30/metro/methuen-police-chief-doled-...

up
Voting closed 0

The culture in the Staties created this guy, no one would be that blatantly corrupt without thinking he'd get away with it, I bet he has seen dozens before him do the same thing and never get caught..
225,000 a year for a police lieutenant?

up
Voting closed 0

The whole "public service" thing is rotten to the core in Massachusetts. Why police be better?

up
Voting closed 0

This "argument" is a form of Tu Quoque (whataboutism) and simultaneously a backhanded "appeal to tradition".

Different areas of civil service have different challenges, but police are unusually immune to accountability, and more likely to be involved in situations where that lack of accountability results in fatalities.

Did you see what happened when social workers effed up and kids were harmed? Compare and contrast.

up
Voting closed 0