Retired police officer charged in alleged pension-boosting scheme

BOSTON --A retired Brockton police lieutenant was charged with mail fraud in federal court on Friday for what prosecutors said was a scheme to dishonestly inflate his pension by $52,000 annually by abusing sick leave so he could work two public jobs.

Charles B. Lincoln, 65, of Middleborough, was a 32-year veteran of the Brockton Police Department who for the last three years of his career also worked as director of security at the Plymouth County jail.

During that period, Lincoln worked the day shift at the sheriff's department and a night shift at the police department, according to the indictment.

Lincoln frequently called in sick, even when he was not ill, to one of his jobs so he didn't have to show up at both on the same day, prosecutors said.

Lincoln, who retired from both jobs in January 2004, used 106 sick days at the Brockton Police Department in 2003 alone, prosecutors allege. By using sick leave, vacation and personal days, Lincoln worked just 60 full days and 14 partial days as a Brockton officer that year, prosecutors said.

"While an employee, if sick, is entitled to use his sick leave, it is a fraud on the Massachusetts taxpayer for a healthy employee to lie and claim he is sick, solely to permit him to show up and work a second job, all for the purpose of maximizing his pension," U.S. Attorney Michael Sullivan said.

Lincoln's attorney, Thomas Drechsler, said his client did not break the law.

"My client denies any fraudulent conduct," Drechsler said. "Everything he did was transparent, open and public. This is a far cry from any criminal conduct and he absolutely maintains his innocence."

Lincoln was charged with mail fraud because the Postal Service was used to deliver correspondence about his retirement.

Public pensions are based on the three highest-paid consecutive years of an employee's career. In Lincoln's final three years of public employment, when he was working both jobs, he made an annual average of about $177,000, qualifying him for a pension of nearly $139,800 per year for the rest of his life.

That is about $52,000 higher than he would have been entitled to if his pension had been based solely on his final three years as a police lieutenant, according to the indictment.

A report released by the state Inspector General in June called Lincoln's actions an "astonishing manipulation" of the system.

Former Plymouth County Sheriff Joseph F. McDonough hired Lincoln, his former campaign manager. McDonough lost the 2004 election.

McDonough is also a member of the Plymouth County Retirement Board, which approves pensions.

The city of Brockton and the sheriff's department have both sued Lincoln to recover some of the pension money, said current Sheriff Joseph D. McDonald Jr., who initiated the investigation into Lincoln.

"I think you can deduce from this indictment ... that this wasn't (Lincoln) taking advantage of legal loopholes, this was outright theft, and I have been saying that since I took office," McDonald said.

Lincoln has not been arrested. He is scheduled to be arraigned on two counts of mail fraud on Thursday. If convicted, he faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, followed by three years of probation, and a $250,000 fine on each count.