Mahopac man heads to jail for faking gas line test results

A Mahopac man has been sentenced to 30 months in federal prison for his role in a conspiracy to fabricate hundreds of gas pipeline safety test results, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.

In an Oct. 28 press release, federal prosecutors said Michael Vasconcellos, 45, pleaded guilty April 21 to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud before U.S. District Judge Cathy Seibel, who also presided over his sentencing.

According to federal prosecutors, the conspiracy cost a utility company more than $64 million in remediation expenses.

“Michael Vasconcellos fabricated gas pipeline test results designed to prevent gas leaks and explosions, putting the lives of New Yorkers at risk,” said U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald. “Today, the defendant faces the consequences of this fraud, having been sentenced to 30 months in prison. Instead of doing his job, the defendant left New Yorkers relying on critical safety checks that never happened, and cost a utility company more than $64 million in remediation.”

According to court filings, Vasconcellos and co-conspirator Liam Treibert were responsible for inspecting welds on natural gas pipelines installed throughout New York City and Westchester County between 2016 and 2023. Instead, prosecutors said, they falsified inspection records for hundreds of welds that were never examined.

The scheme involved a practice known as “radaring,” in which inspectors took multiple X-rays of one weld and falsely presented them as images of different welds. The inspections were intended to identify defects that could lead to gas leaks or explosions.

Hundreds of pipeline welds in the Bronx and Westchester County were affected, according to prosecutors.

In addition to his prison sentence, Vasconcellos was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay more than $64 million in restitution, according to the SDNY release.

The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in White Plains following an investigation involving the New York State Inspector General and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General.