Former board president charged with embezzling $1.3 million from Duquesne Incline preservation society

The former president of the board of trustees for the nonprofit that operates the Duquesne Incline has been charged with embezzling more than $1.3 million. 

Christopher Furman, 53, of Pittsburgh, was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of wire fraud and money laundering, United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced on Thursday. 

While Pittsburgh Regional Transit owns the Duquesne Incline, it's been operated by the nonprofit Society for the Preservation of the Duquesne Heights Incline since 1964. 

According to the indictment, Furman was selected president of the board of trustees because he was a former employee familiar with the incline's mechanical operations, and he was an attorney. 

In his role, prosecutors said Furman wasn't allowed to view the society's bank accounts or use its money. But the indictment said that more than two dozen times between October 2024 and September 2025, Furman transferred nearly $1.4 million from the society's bank accounts into his own. 

Furman then transferred the money to an online cryptocurrency exchange and digital asset management platform, where he bought and sold cryptocurrency for his personal profit, prosecutors said.

In a statement, the Society for the Preservation of the Duquesne Heights Incline said the organization notified authorities when it discovered discrepancies with its financial records. Furman was removed from his position, and the society said it has been cooperating with the FBI and the United States Attorney's Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania. 

"The Society is thankful for the dedicated and thorough handling of these matters by these entities. The historic Duquesne Incline remains fully operational and The Society continues the mission of preservation," the statement said.

Even though Allegheny County owns the incline, Pittsburgh Mayor Corey O'Connor shared his thoughts on the allegations.

"It's a shame when people take advantage of government, and we see that way too often when people do things like that. It only hurts all of us," O'Connor said on Friday.

Furman is out on a $100,000 unsecured bond to appear back in court for his arraignment on March 25. KDKA reached out to his attorney for comment, but did not hear back on Friday night.