Courtesy of National Grid
Bogan and Findlay worked for National Grid during the scheme.
By Forum Staff
A former National Grid employee has been sentenced to up to three years in prison for aiding the leader of a shadow utility company that illegally installed gas meters in violation of safety protocols by infiltrating the public utility and corrupting some of its employees, City officials recently announced.
Rosedale resident Phoebe Bogan, 43, pleaded guilty in May to enterprise corruption. According to the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office and the Department of Investigation, Weldon Findlay, 48, who worked for National Grid until 2010, was the “mastermind” of the scheme. He pleaded guilty earlier this year to one count of enterprise corruption and one count of falsifying business records. Findlay has been sentenced to 2 1/3 to 7 years in prison.
According to the guilty pleas, the enterprise arranged for the illegal installation of gas meters in exchange for cash at 33 residential properties across Brooklyn, including Williamsburg, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn Heights, Bushwick, Crown Heights, Midwood, and Borough Park, in addition to homes in parts of Queens. Findlay formed the enterprise and directed its criminal activities from Jan. 12, 2016 to June 30, 2016.
According to Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez, existing protocols required National Grid employees opening accounts (for new or renewed gas service) to check the public Building Information System database to confirm that the property had been inspected as required by the City Department of Buildings. A licensed master plumber or a DOB inspector must visit the location and conduct appropriate testing to ensure that gas lines have been properly and safely installed; compliance is indicated by a control number created in the BIS database. A National Grid employee acting properly would check for the BIS number and then include it in the account record before dispatching a technician to install a meter and initiate gas service.
However, according to the investigation, when a landlord with a new or renovated apartment wanted to avoid either the expense of the required tests, or possible delays associated with compliance, the landlord paid Findlay, who then contacted Bogan, who would arrange for illegal service. Landlords could be confident that National Grid employees setting up the account and providing gas service would violate or ignore any rules or regulations that would prevent or delay the supply of gas, investigators noted.
National Grid and DOB have inspected every property identified in connection with the investigation, and ensured that there is no risk to public safety.
