Trial Pushed Back for Caltrain Repairmen Accused of Embezzlement

A jury trial has been postponed a month for two longtime San Mateo County Transit District employees accused of stealing from Caltrain ticket machines they had been hired to repair.

Orvilla Taylor, 62, and Herbert Todd, 55, are charged with felony embezzlement and grand larceny in connection with the connection with the alleged thievery, San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said.

Their trial was scheduled to begin in San Mateo County Superior Court on Monday, but the defense attorney for Taylor filed a motion to continue while additional evidence is turned in.

A judge granted the motion Monday and the trial for both defendants was reset for Feb. 24.

At the time of the alleged crimes, Orvilla and Taylor worked for the San Mateo County Transit District as repairmen for ticket vending machines, according to prosecutors.

They brought the machines back to headquarters for repair, but on 12 occasions the pair disassembled the machines and store more than $40,000 before returning the machines to service, prosecutors said.

A Caltrain audit discovered the discrepancies between the amounts int he machines and the amounts ultimately collected by Caltrain, and surveillance videos at the stations showed the defendants acting "suspicious," according to prosecutors.

This will be the fifth setting of the jury trial date since the superior court arraignment on Oct. 3, 2012, prosecutors said.

Orvilla and Taylor remain out of custody on $150,000 bail bonds.