Alaska State DOT Fleet Reports Diesel Fuel Theft

ANCHORAGE, AK - Using a 100-gallon tank mounted on the back of his personal pickup, a state Department of Transportation employee siphoned off thousands of gallons of state-owned diesel fuel over seven years until being caught last summer, according to Alaska State Troopers, according to Anchorage Daily News.

An indictment filed in court also accuses Palmer resident Michael Barickman, 55, of allegedly stealing more than $18,500 in DOT property, which, combined with the 10,500 gallons of fuel, cost the department more than $36,000, troopers said.

"I don't know how it's possible, but it is deplorable," DOT spokesman Roger Wetherell said. "Hopefully justice will be served."

Barickman was spotted filling his tank at a Palmer facility in June 2008 and troopers say they later found thousands of dollars in stolen property at his home. They say the thefts began in 2001.

Troopers say Barickman's brother, William Barickman, 51, also a DOT employee, stole about $720 in property and later destroyed or hid the items to avoid getting caught.

The property both allegedly stole ranged from guardrail sections and bolts to paint and boxes of disposable shop towels, troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters said. Michael Barickman is facing nine felony counts of theft, William Barickman one count of second-degree theft and tampering with evidence. Both are due in court next month.

Wetherell said the brothers started with the DOT in the mid-1990s and worked as equipment operators until resigning last summer.

Reached at home in Palmer, Michael Barickman said he didn't know anything about the allegations and that the claims are untrue. "Far as I'm concerned they are."

In response to the thefts, the DOT urged facilities to take preventive steps such as powering down pumps when not in use and measuring pump use, although it is up to the supervisor at each facility to ensure security, Wetherell said.