The following defendants were charged in a state grand jury indictment obtained yesterday afternoon (Dec. 5) by the Division of Criminal Justice Specialized Crimes Bureau:
Lenny Roman, 38, of Hoboken, N.J., a former employee of Parsons Environment & Infrastructure Group, Inc., the contractor that operates central inspection facilities (“CIFs”) for the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC). Roman worked at the Secaucus CIF until 2010 and later was licensed to operate a private inspection facility in Paterson, Lenny’s Diagnostic & Inspection.
Evan Pierre-Noel, 27, of West Orange, N.J., who is employed by Parsons as a motor vehicle inspector at the Secaucus CIF.
Mark Faison Jr., 48, of Newark, N.J., who is employed by Parsons as a motor vehicle inspector at the Newark CIF.
Francesco Calabresi, 22, of Park Ridge, N.J., a car owner.
“This type of trickery threatens the health of all New Jerseyans by polluting the air that we breathe with more toxic emissions from poorly maintained vehicles,” said Attorney General Porrino. “Our investigation of this scam is continuing, and we will aggressively prosecute those who illegally subvert vehicle emission standards.”
“Working with the MVC and DEP, we’re putting dishonest operators on notice that we’re wise to these data simulators and can detect when they’re used to falsify inspections,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice. “When we do, we’re prepared to charge such cheats with serious crimes.”
“This case is a prime example of the important role that state government partnerships play in protecting the integrity of New Jersey vehicle inspections,” said Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) Chairman and Chief Administrator Raymond P. Martinez. “The MVC’s Division of Inspection Services and Division of Security, Investigations and Internal Audit regularly work with the Department of Environmental Protection and the Attorney General’s Office to thwart attempts that are made to commit all types of fraud and abuse, and we remain committed to maintaining the legitimacy of not only our Inspections Program, but all State programs.”
“This type of behavior has very real consequences by increasing the volume of pollutants that affect public health and the environment,” said Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bob Martin. “We are committed to continually improving air quality in New Jersey and will not tolerate actions by individuals that undermine the efforts the overwhelming majority of motorists take to make sure the emissions-control systems on their vehicles are operating property.”
Most passenger cars and light-duty vehicles of model year 1996 or later have an onboard diagnostic (OBD) system that monitors the vehicle’s emissions system. During an OBD inspection, an inspector at a private inspection facility (PIF) or a central inspection facility (CIF) connects state-approved inspection equipment to a standardized “data link connector” in the vehicle to retrieve OBD data in order to determine whether the vehicle passes or fails. The state’s investigation revealed that the defendants participated in the installation of an OBD simulator in place of the data link connector in vehicles that had failed emissions inspections in order to generate false data that enabled the vehicles to pass inspection.
The state’s ongoing investigation revealed that Roman allegedly sought out clients whose cars had failed inspection. It is alleged that he typically charged from $150 to more than $200 to get them passing results with an OBD simulator. From October through December 2015, Roman and various co-conspirators allegedly used an OBD simulator owned by Roman to falsify 131 emissions inspections involving 127 vehicles. Roman’s license to run a private inspection facility was suspended at the time of the alleged conduct, and most of the fraudulent inspections allegedly were performed at the Secaucus CIF. A smaller number were performed at the Lodi and Newark CIFs.
Pierre-Noel allegedly conspired with Roman, using his position as a motor vehicle inspector at the Secaucus CIF to refer clients to Roman and assist with a number of the inspections in which Roman’s OBD simulator was used. Faison allegedly used Roman’s OBD simulator during an inspection of his own vehicle and also inspected several other vehicles with the OBD simulator at the Newark CIF. Tyndall and Calabresi allegedly arranged to obtain passing inspection results for their vehicles using Roman’s OBD simulator.
Roman also is charged with official misconduct for allegedly falsely reporting 157 state inspection stickers stolen from his private vehicle in April 2015. Roman allegedly fraudulently reported them stolen so that he could sell them. Roman’s license to operate a private inspection facility was suspended after he reported the stickers stolen because he was not authorized to have the stickers in his vehicle. One of the stickers was later found on a vehicle owned by a man who had allegedly paid Roman $250 after his vehicle failed inspection. Two more of the stickers were found when detectives executed a search warrant on Roman’s vehicle.
Deputy Attorney General Phillip Leahy presented the case to the state grand jury for the Division of Criminal Justice Specialized Crimes Bureau, under the supervision of Deputy Bureau Chief Jacqueline Smith and Bureau Chief Jill Mayer. Deputy Attorney General Michael King also is assigned to prosecute the case. The lead investigators are, for the Division of Criminal Justice, Detective Nicholas Olenick and State Investigator Ruben Contreras, under the supervision of Lt. Bill Newsome; for the Motor Vehicle Commission, Investigator Frank VanWie of the Division of Security, Investigation and Internal Audit, and Manager James Arose and Compliance Officer Theodore Lefkowich of the Enhanced Inspection and Maintenance Unit; and for the Department of Environmental Protection, Environmental Engineer Jeffrey Kennedy of the Bureau of Mobile Sources.
Roman and Pierre-Noel are each charged with conspiracy (2nd degree), official misconduct (2nd degree), violation of the federal Air Pollution Control Act (3rd degree), computer criminal activity (3rd degree), and tampering with public records or information (3rd degree). Roman also is charged with a second count of official misconduct (2nd degree) and pattern of official misconduct (2nd degree).
Faison is charged with official misconduct (2nd degree), violation of the federal Air Pollution Control Act (3rd degree), and tampering with public records or information (3rd degree). Calabresi and Tyndall are each charged with violation of the federal Air Pollution Control Act (3rd degree).
Second-degree charges carry a sentence of five to 10 years in state prison and a fine of up to $150,000, while third degree charges carry a sentence of three to five years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000. The third-degree charge of computer criminal activity carries a mandatory period of parole ineligibility equal to one-third to one-half of the sentence imposed. The indictment is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
The indictment was handed up to Superior Court Judge Robert Billmeier in Mercer County, who assigned the case to Hudson County, where the defendants will be ordered to appear in court at a later date for arraignment.
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