3rd Mass. State Trooper Pleads Guilty In Overtime Scandal, 2 Other Troopers Appear In Court
BOSTON (CBS/AP) — One Massachusetts State Police trooper has pleaded guilty to getting paid for overtime shifts he either did not work or complete while two other troopers pleaded not guilty to similar accusations in court Friday.
Federal prosecutors said 45-year-old Gary Herman, of Chester, pleaded guilty Thursday to embezzlement from an agency receiving federal funds. He is the third trooper to plead guilty. Under a plea deal, Herman faces six to 12 months in prison at sentencing on Jan. 17.
Herman was assigned to the now-disbanded Troop E, responsible for traffic enforcement along the Massachusetts Turnpike. Prosecutors said he earned nearly $228,000 in 2016 including more than $63,000 in overtime pay. About $12,000 of that was fraudulently obtained.
Prosecutors said he submitted bogus citations to make it look like he was working shifts he either left early or didn't work at all.
Meanwhile, former troopers John Giulino, 68, and David Keefe, 52, pleaded not guilty to charges of making a false claim to an employer, larceny, and procurement fraud.
In 2016, Giulino was a station commander at the Troop E Westfield barracks, according to prosecutors. He was allegedly paid over $10,000 for over 99 hours of work that he did not appear at across 28 shifts.
Prosecutors said Keefe, as a station commander at the Troop E Weston barracks, obtained over $17,000 in payment for over 173 hours across 74 shifts that he did not work.
Their trial will continue next October.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
