Keolis exec charged with stealing millions in copper wire, funds from commuter-rail operator

John "Big John" Pigsley, the assistant chief engineer for Keolis Commuter Services, which runs the MBTA's commuter-rail system, was arrested today on charges he funneled millions of dollars to a friend's company - and his own Pigman Group concern - for equipment and services never provided to the system but which instead helped pay for extensive renovations to Pigsley's homes in Beverly and Vermont.

Pigsley, 58, was also charged with stealing millions of dollars worth of copper wire from Keolis, which the feds said let him order the wire, but never inventoried it to make sure it was getting what it paid for, rather than being delivered to Pigsley's Beverly home - when he wasn't just lifting it from Keolis work sites, allegedly. In an indictment unsealed today, a federal grand jury alleged:

Keolis did not inventory or otherwise track copper wire purchases, and often vendors delivered legitimate copper wire purchases directly to Keolis's work sites. Pigsley was therefore able to hide his theft of the copper wire by either personally picking up copper wire orders from vendors, or by having copper wire orders delivered to his Beverly home. Pigsley then personally transported the copper wire to scrap metal businesses, trading the wire for thousands of dollars in cash several times a month, and sometimes more than once a day.

In total, Pigsley obtained more than $4.5 million in cash by stealing and scrapping copper wire paid for by Keolis.

Pigsley was indicted on five counts of wire fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, six counts of tax evasion, one count of filing a false tax return and four counts of structuring financial transactions to evade reporting requirements.

John Rafferty, who ran LJ Electric, one of Keolis's largest suppliers, was also charged, but has agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

According to the indictment, in addition to his wire theft, between 2014 and 2021, Pigsley and Rafferty ran a system in which Rafferty would be stuff for the Pigman Group, then charge it to Keolis - with a percentage allegedly kept by Rafferty for his trouble. In total, US Attorney's office charges, the two siphoned $8 million from Keolis.

The indictment says this includes $1 million in home-building materials as well as $164,000 in doors, windows, window treatments, countertops and designer cabinets for Pigsley's home and Pigman garage in Beverly as well as for a house he owned in Ryegate, VT. Pigsley even added in $24,000 in designer cabinets for one of his friend's homes, allegedly. Also allegedly billed to Keolis for Pigsley's own use: Three Ford F550s and four F350s and seven Bobcats, each costing more than $70,000.

Complete indictment (1.5M PDF).

Innocent, etc.