Trial date announced for Ray Pickles’ criminal larceny case

Oct 24, 2019

PLYMOUTH — The criminal larceny trial for Ray Pickles, the former Executive Director of the Carver, Marion, Wareham Regional Refuse Disposal District, is set to begin on Feb. 24 at 9 a.m. at the Plymouth District Court, with the final pre-trial hearing taking place on Feb. 3 at 2 p.m.

Pickles is charged with six criminal counts of larceny for taking $838,457 from the waste district. Officials from the district allege that Pickles used his 45-year position as director to make improper payments both to himself and to Moss Hollow Management, a consulting firm for which he was the only employee. 

The waste district was formed in 1975 to to secure free waste disposal for members at the Covanta SEMASS waste-to-energy plant in Rochester.

Officials from the three member towns discovered financial irregularities in the district’s records in 2017. The district fired Pickles in January 2018, and filed a civil embezzlement suit against him in June 2018. 

The Attorney General and Inspector General’s offices indicted Pickles on criminal charges in March 2019.

Pickles is represented by Attorney Christopher Markey in the criminal case, and Special Assistant Attorney General John Brooks is representing Massachusetts as the prosecutor.

Both Markey and Brooks declined to comment on the progress of the case, following a pre-trial hearing on Thursday, Oct. 24.