Will they lose their pensions?

10 MTA workers busted for fraud scheme

By ANTONIO ANTENUCCI and BETH DEFALCO

Ten unionized MTA workers have been busted in a long-running fraud case for recklessly falsifying track-signal safety records to make it appear they had completed the inspections on the signals when they never did, authorities said today.

“Failing to properly inspect the subway system can lead to delays in service and, potentially, endanger the safety of subway riders,” said Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance.

Eight TWU Local workers were indicted for tampering with public records, a felony. Two of their immediate supervisors -- members of the Subway Surface Association -- were charged with record-tampering as well as official misconduct, a misdemeanor.

Authorities said that instead of scanning bar codes located on subway equipment as they inspected it, workers merely scanned copies of bar codes of the signals kept in a book, which was found in the locker of maintainer Anthony Pellegrino, 29, of Maspeth, LI.

A union lawyer for six maintenance workers arraigned today tried to justify the conduct by saying the men never made any money off faking the inspections and were “scapegoats” for upper management.

“They were ordered to meet quotas that some may describe as impossible,” said lawyer Arthur Z. Schwartz.

Union officials cried foul that only their workers were targeted.

“No senior managers or Transit Authority executives have been targeted, only hourly signal maintainers who were damned if they did and damned if they didn’t,” TWU officials said in a joint statement.

But several sources said there was no evidence of systemic wrongdoing among MTA brass, despite calls from the TWU that the MTA Inspector General investigate “higher-ups.”

MTA inspector general reports in 2000, 2005 and 2010 highlighted faked inspection reports and explained that faulty red/yellow/green signals, which tell train operators to halt or proceed, could put riders in danger.After that, the MTA began using a bar-code system that required codes be scanned, but even that didn’t work.

MTA New York City Transit President Thomas F. Prendergast said additional reviews and staffing has been added.