Duquesne Incline Official Embezzlement Topped $1M: Authorities

PITTSBURGH, PA — A Pittsburgh attorney has been indicted for allegedly embezzling $1.3 million from the organization that operates one of the city's treasures - the Duquesne Incline.

Christopher Furman 53, was indicted on 10 counts of charges of wire fraud and money laundering, Troy Rivetti, the United States Attorney in Pittsburgh announced on Thursday/

According to the indictment, in 2020 Furman was selected president of the board of trustees for the Society for the Preservation of the Duquesne Heights Incline—the organization that has operated the incline since the society’s founding in 1964.

His selection was based on his history as a former employee of the incline and familiarity with the incline’s mechanical operations, as well as his background as an attorney.

In his role as b0ard president, Furman was neither authorized to view the society’s bank accounts nor to use its money for personal purposes. The indictment alleges that from October 2024 to September 2025, Furman transferred approximately $1,379,300 from the society’s bank accounts into his own account via more than 25 electronic transactions.

Furman then allegedly transferred that money to an online cryptocurrency exchange and digital asset management platform, where he purchased and sold cryptocurrency for his personal profit.

Each count of wire fraud provides for a maximum total sentence of up to 20 years in prison, a fine of the greater of $250,000 or an alternative of twice the gross pecuniary gain, or both.

At each count of engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from wire fraud (money laundering), the law provides for a maximum total sentence of up to 10 years in prison, a fine of the greater of $250,000 or an alternative of twice the amount of criminally derived property, or both.