Energy Transfer Employee Charged With Bribery At Mariner East

WEST CHESTER, PA — Several Energy Transfer employees and contractors have been charged with bribery and conspiracy in connection with the illegal hiring of state constables as private security at the Mariner East pipeline, the Chester County District Attorney's Office announced Tuesday.

The charges come just a few months after two Pennsylvania state constables were charged with posing as law enforcement and turning away the public from a pipeline drilling accident that occurred on a homeowner's property.

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The scheme to intentionally misuse the constables was orchestrated by Energy Transfer's own security manager, Frank Recknagel, the DA's Office said. Recknagel, 59, of Havertown, said that hiring on-duty law enforcement officials was Energy Transfer's "unwritten policy." This is despite a statement from Energy Transfer in August that shifted responsibility for the misconduct onto third party vendors.

Robel and Johnson themselves are facing numerous charges, including official oppression, Ethics Act violations, and bribery.

In order to hide this illegal activity, officials said that Recknagel "off-shored" the hiring and payment of the constables through two private security firms, TigerSwan and Raven Knights.

Both firms have an unclean history, the DA said. Raven Knights was run by former Pennsylvania State Troopers James Murphy and Richard Lester, both of whom were charged. Murphy is not permitted to hold a private detective license because of previous misconduct, authorities said. TigerSwan security advisers Michael Boffo and Nikolas McKinnon were also arrested; the company has been embroiled in controversy over unlicensed security work at the Dakota Access Pipeline.

To hide the payments, Recknagel had uninvolved subcontractors send payments to these security firms, which were in turn paid the two constables arrested in August.

Officials noted that Energy Transfer could have simply hired a reputable security firm and paid the guards directly and legally. However, "Energy Transfer wanted the power of the badge to enforce their corporate will and engaged in illegal activity to make it happen," the DA's Office said in their statement.

Recknagel, McKinnon, Boffo, Murphy, and Lester were all charged with bribery, conspiracy, and related counts, and were arrested on Monday. Preliminary hearings are forthcoming.