Suffolk County, Massachusetts in 2016. 46-year-old Thomas Lucey, trolley driver for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, said he was attacked by a masked man. Transit cops release surveillance footage in a bid to catch the suspect. Now prosecutors are saying the beating was staged. A grand jury indicted Lucey on Wednesday for two counts of insurance fraud, one count of workers’ compensation fraud, one count of misleading a police investigation, and one count of perjury, according to a press statement from transit police.
They said he staged the attack with a friend so he could collect workers comp and disability insurance. To get the money, he signed documents under penalty of perjury, and claimed to have post-traumatic stress from the attack.
Transit cops responded to the alleged beating on Oct. 30, 2016, at the Cedar Grove Station in Boston. They described the suspect as a man in a “Michael Myers” mask (of the movie “Halloween”) and dark overalls. Lucey told police the assailant boarded the trolley, pulled him out, and punched him repeatedly. He was put in the hospital after the incident, cops said.
Investigators said “Myers” left behind a plastic pumpkin. On it, they discovered fingerprints, leading them to an acquaintance of Lucey. This person cooperated with police, telling them Lucey paid him $2,000 for the so-called attack. Bank records backed up the claim, as did phone records showing these two communicated before and after the staged assault, police said.
The arraignment is scheduled for Suffolk Superior Court on March 20. Lucey is represented by Steven Borelli, authorities said. Law&Crime could not immediately reach the defense for comment.
[Screengrab of “Michael Myers” via MBPD]
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