David Khoukhachvili Scams The MTA
If you ever hear the name David Khoukhachvili, the first thing that should come to mind is “scammer”. This is according to a report which will appear in today’s New York Daily News, which talks about how he scammed the MTA for a dozen years by using doctored papers to obtain a cheaper rental rate. John Marzulli has more:
A businessman got a great deal on a lease for a garage and restaurant at the MTA’s lower Manhattan headquarters – by allegedly faking the rental papers, the Daily News has learned.
For the last 12 years, David Khoukhachvili has been fooling the agency into thinking he had a legitimate lease for his businesses at 2 Broadway, according to court papers unsealed this week.
When the MTA took over the building in 1998, it assumed the leases of other tenants.
Khoukhachvili is accused of backdating a bogus document to make it look like a basement parking garage and the Bull and Bear restaurant were old tenants.
“Khoukhachvili and others would be assured a long-term and increased stream of profit for the parking garage because the MTA would be stuck with the lease for decades with Khoukhachvili making a low monthly lease payment,” FBI agent George Khouzami said in a affidavit.
The criminal complaint doesn’t estimate how much money the MTA lost out on, but Khoukhachvili was paying $13,000 a month with 3% increases.
An unidentified cooperating witness blew the lid off the scheme.
Click here to read the complete report.
This is extremely disturbing news on many different levels. Besides the obvious angle of how something like this has cost the MTA millions over the last dozen years, one has to wonder how something like this went undetected for so long. Why were measures not in place to avoid such bogus transactions from happening? Since this is the MTA we are talking about, could we really expect this to be just an isolated incident?
The agency needs to seriously go over all of their transactions with a fine tooth comb & make sure nothing of this sort is happening. While it might take some time to do such a thing, it is better to cross this bridge now versus having this outcome repeat itself.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Service Diversions 04-15-10
I have just updated the “Service Diversions” page with the latest information for the weekend & following week (beyond in some cases). LIRR riders, do not forget about the major work affecting the Hempstead & Port Jefferson lines. I suggest you print out a copy of the diversions to carry with you or use your mobile device to access the phone friendly version of Transit Blogger. Have a safe & wonderful weekend!
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Bus Depot Security Guard Killed By Drunk Driver
Writing entries about death involving public transportation is never easy & that is once again the case. Earlier this morning, a security guard at the College Point Bus Depot was killed while trying to cross the Whitestone Expressway. Pete Donohue & Jonathan Lemire of the New York Daily News have more:
A security guard working at a Queens bus depot who tried to run across a busy highway was struck and killed by a drunk driver, police said Thursday.
The guard tried to dash across the Whitestone Expwy. in College Point, but was struck by a 2010 Chevrolet Cobalt, police said.
He was killed instantly.
The driver of the Cobalt, 65-year-old Harley Greenfield, stayed at the scene and refused to take a breathalyzer exam, police sources said.
Greenfield, who lives in Manhattan, was charged with driving while impaired, the sources said.
Further charges could be added.
The guard – whose name is being withheld pending the notification of his family – worked for Summit Security and was contracted to guard the MTA’s College Point depot, transit sources said.
Investigators believe he was walking towards a nearby Burger King when he was struck at 10:45 p.m. Wednesday.
An MTA bus driver witnessed the accident, pulled over along the highway and called for help. Paramedics could not revive the guard.
The bus driver, who said he was traumatized by the scene, then went off-duty, according to transit sources.
Let me first offer my condolences to the friends, family, & co-workers of this yet to be named gentlemen.
As far as the story goes, a slight correction is in order as the article had to have meant he was trying to go to McDonalds. There is no Burger King in that vicinity. I do not condone the actions of Mr. Greenfield if he truly was driving under the influence. If he was, he had zero business being behind the wheel.
However even with saying that, I can’t help but feel this death was caused by the guard himself. Who in their right mind tries to cross a major highway much less one as busy as the Whitestone Expressway?
This highway is always full with cars regardless of the time. No one could honestly expect to have much success trying to cross this highway. Even if Mr. Greenfield was not drunk or even on the road, who is to say a sober driver would not have hit him?
The immediate reaction is to point the finger of blame towards the alleged drunk driver. However I feel the victim should receive just as much, if not more as his actions ultimately caused his demise.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Bus Dispatcher Accused Of Sick Time Fraud
The borough of Staten Island is back in the transit news limelight & once again it is not in a good way. 3 days ago, I wrote an entry on a report in the New York Daily News which said up to 21% of Staten Island bus drivers called in sick this past February before a major storm hits. Today’s report focuses on a MTA Bus dispatcher who is accused of calling in sick for 10 days straight while being in Florida. Pete Donohue (along with Lisa Lucas from Naples, Florida) has more:
A Staten Island bus dispatcher booked a flight to Florida – and then called in sick from the Sunshine State day after day, transit sources said.
Giovanni Bonanno, 62, quickly retired last month, sources said, after NYC Transit officials accused him of lying about his sick time – a practice transit officials say is widespread in some pockets of the workforce.
“This kind of blatant abuse of the system costs the MTA millions of dollars each year and … we will go to whatever lengths necessary to crack down on the minority of our employees who break the rules,” Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesman Jeremy Soffin said.
Sick time and leave abuse have been a particular problem on Staten Island, according to transit managers. Transit data reveal that a high percentage of bus division workers there claim to suffer from a chronic ailment, or have a seriously ill member of their immediate family who needs their care.
Over a 10-day stretch starting March 14, Bonanno repeatedly called his Yukon depot prior to his shift, sources said, telling a supervisor he was taking a Family and Medical Leave Act day. The MTA wouldn’t disclose Bonanno’s condition.
The agency investigation determined Bonanno booked a round-trip flight to Florida about a month before he started calling in sick.
Bonanno, who owns property in Florida, didn’t return telephone calls seeking comment. His wife, Marjorie, said her husband did nothing wrong.
Click here to read the complete report.
I think it is safe to say that Staten Island bus drivers are under a full force attack from the MTA & the court of public opinion. I still stand by my sentiment of feeling the attitude towards MTA employees living out of state is ridiculous.
As far as this case is concerned, I will hold off on passing final judgment until all the facts come out. I am curious as to what methods were used to find out he booked a vacation in advance. I wonder if an invasion of privacy came into play on that one. However I will end this by saying, if he really did fake sickness, he should be punished & have to payback any money he made on those days.
xoxo Transit Blogger
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Editorial: Slow Train To A Solvent Subway System
The state of financial peril that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority finds itself in is a topic opined on by many including yours truly. Today’s New York Daily News continues down that path with an editorial by Joshua Greenman:
Right now it looks like there’s no light at the end of the fiscal tunnel for mass transit in New York. Over the long term, putting the MTA on solid footing is going to require something in very short supply: courage in Albany, in the form of car tolls on the East River bridges or some other sustainable funding stream.
In the meantime, in the interest of helping the Metropolitan Transportation Authority start to dig itself out of its half-billion-dollar-plus shortfall, here are a few humble, outside-the-booth suggestions for creative revenue-raisers:
Make every MetroCard a lottery card. The New York City subway system averages 5 million rides per workday and nearly 3 million each weekend day, carrying more passengers than all other rail mass transit systems in the United States combined. If every 100th card sold yielded a month of free rides, the increase in ridership would more than cover the 1% hit. The same would be true if every day, one of the 5 million riders took home a $1,000 prize.
Open the stations to more stores. The system has some 468 stations, but with precious few exceptions, all you can buy are newspapers and magazines, sodas and candy. In the past 20 years, airports have experienced a retail revolution with better food, tons of stores and even high-end vending machines. It’s time to take that underground and sell everything from headphones and MP3s to Yankees gear.
Figure out how to give trains cell and Wi-Fi service. Two and a half years ago, there were plans to give every station wireless access, raising about $50 million for the transit system over 10 years in the process. Somehow, it’s still stalled. San Francisco and Boston are already getting underground wireless coverage; what’s wrong with us?
Click here to read the complete editorial.
Joshua presents some ideas that make a lot of sense & would help drive dollars towards the MTA’s way. However a “but” does exist & that comes from reality. While his ideas have noble intentions, one has to wonder how realistic they are. This is not because the good ideas are far-fetched. The problem lies with the execution of them.
Can we really expect the MTA, who is behind schedule in all sorts of ways, to be able to execute such radical changes? This is the same transit agency who is years behind in equipping stations with real time information boards for subway arrivals. If something like that is so far behind schedule, what makes Joshua or anyone think they could execute something more dynamic?
As far as the gambling & rat idea goes, I won’t really comment much on those. I can find the unfortunate humor (due to system conditions & not Joshua himself) about the rats. Gambling is something that will be a slippery slope & prime for illegal activity. The MTA does not need to engage in anything of that nature with all the challenges it faces now.
In the end, the real solutions need to start with the City of New York, & Albany itself. We need to elect officials who understand & give a damn about our public transportation policy. If we do not, can we really expect or deserve the MTA & our fortunes to change?
xoxo Transit Blogger
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