BOSTON — A former Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority employee pleaded guilty to multiple conspiracy charges.
Jensen Vatel, 43, of Brockton, pleaded guilty on Thursday to conspiracy to falsify records, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, aiding and abetting, falsification of records, aiding and abetting, and false statements, aiding and abetting.
Vatel was indicted in May 2025, along with four others. A superseding indictment in July added two additional defendants and 30 additional charges.
According to officials, Vatel was a former Red Line Maintenance of Way employee who worked as a track inspector.
He was in charge of completing track inspections for the Red Line.
Track inspectors completed the inspections using MBTA-issued cell phones with an application called MaxTrax to record information.
Rather than complete inspections, from Jan. 1, 2024, to Oct. 16, 2024, Vatel and the alleged co-conspirators either falsified track inspection reports or aided and abetted the submission of falsified inspection reports.
According to court documents, Vatel and the alleged co-conspirators did this by not completing their inspections and creating falsified inspection reports with information found online.
The pair were also accused of extending the duration of the “inspections” on the MaxTrax applications to make the inspection period appear longer.
Vatel was also accused of working on personal vehicles during the time they had marked as performing some train inspections.
From Jan. 1, 2024 to Oct. 16, 2024, Vatel and the alleged co-conspirators also submitted false overtime sheets for hours that they did not work.
According to investigators, Vatel and the alleged co-conspirators did not show up at all for the shift; showed up hours late for their shifts; or showed up at the beginning of the shift, used the hand scan, and then disappeared for hours.
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