Former Massachusetts State Police lieutenant from Westport indicted on pay fraud

FALL RIVER – A former lieutenant assigned to Troop D of the Massachusetts State Police (MSP) has been indicted in connection with submitting claims for holiday pay that he never accrued, Attorney General Maura Healey announced today.

David Andrade, 47, of Westport, was indicted by a Bristol County Grand Jury today on one count of Larceny Over $1,200 by Single Scheme and one count of Public Employee Standards of Conduct Violation (False/Fraudulent Claim to Employer). Andrade will be arraigned in Bristol Superior Court at a later date.

The AG’s Office began an investigation into Andrade after MSP suspected misconduct and referred the matter to the AG’s Office. Andrade was a lieutenant with Troop D of the MSP from July 28, 2018 until August 13, 2019 and served as the station commander of the Dartmouth barracks during that time. Troop D’s patrol area is the southeast part of the state, including the Cape and Islands.

The AG’s investigation determined that while station commander, Andrade allegedly took days off and submitted claims for payment for 22 holiday compensatory days that he never accrued. As a result, he allegedly obtained $11,538.56 worth of time off that he was not entitled to. In an effort to cover up what he was doing, Andrade allegedly falsified entries on his attendance calendars to make it appear that he was actually working on days that he had taken off.

This matter is being prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General John Reynolds of AG Healey’s White Collar and Public Integrity Division. The case was investigated by Senior Financial Investigator Molly Parks and Commissioned Officers assigned to the State Police Detective Unit at the Office of the Attorney General, with assistance from the AG’s Digital Evidence Lab. MSP fully cooperated throughout the investigation.