A Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) employee pleaded guilty on Jan. 30 to conspiring with other individuals to engage in wire fraud in connection with MTA excess vehicle auctions.
According to a plea agreement, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in New York City, MTA employee Timour Abramov engaged in a conspiracy with other individuals to thwart the competitive bidding process on numerous excess vehicle auctions conducted by the MTA to ensure that a company controlled by him and a co-conspirator submitted the winning bid and would be awarded the contract. As part of the conspiracy, an MTA sales specialist and co-conspirator provided Abramov confidential pricing information in violation of MTA rules.
“New Yorkers rely on the MTA and this criminal scheme boils down to stealing from the public,” said Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “We will continue to detect and punish those that abuse the public trust.”
“Abusing access to confidential MTA information to interfere with a fair and competitive process undermines the public trust in that process and unfairly reflects on tens of thousands of honest, hardworking MTA employees," said Acting MTA Inspector General Elizabeth Keating. “Our office is grateful for the diligence and commitment from our law enforcement...
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