Criminal Enforcement FY 2023 Annual Results

2023 Major Criminal Cases

The criminal enforcement program investigates and assists in the prosecution of knowing or negligent environmental violations. 

In fiscal year (FY) 2023, the criminal enforcement program opened 199 new cases.  An individual defendant was prosecuted in 74% of the criminal cases charged in FY 2023. The criminal enforcement program’s conviction rate was 100% in FY 2023.   

Court sentencing in this year’s cases resulted in a total of 106 years of incarceration for individual defendants.  Individual and corporate defendants paid $536,053,678 in fines and restitution with $4,550,000 in court-ordered environmental projects. Defendants were required to forfeit an additional $521,080,099 of illegal proceeds in FY 2023. 

The following are several case examples that summarize information contained in public press releases.

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Washakie Renewable Energy, LLC

Five Individuals Sentenced Related to a $500M Scheme to File False Claims for Renewable Fuel Tax Credits

Statute: Clean Air Act, Title 18 of the U.S. Code

From 2010 to 2016, four members of the Kingston family, who owned and operated Washakie Renewable Energy LLC (WRE), conspired with Lev Dermen, owner of Noil Energy Group, to file false claims for renewable fuel tax credits and generate fraudulent Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) under the EPA Renewable Fuel Standard program. The IRS issued over $511M to WRE based on fraudulent information. WRE and their co-conspirators generated at least 37M fraudulent RINs that were sold for approximately $65M. The illegal funds were used to purchase a Bugatti, Ferraris, a $20M yacht, and mansions in Beverly Hills, CA and Salt Lake City, UT among many other luxury items. In April 2023 all five were sentenced, netting a total of 83 years of incarceration and restitution of $511,842,773, to be paid joint and several. Jacob Kingston was ordered to pay a $338,606,523 money judgment, and Dermen was ordered to pay a money judgement amount of $181,847,376. 

• Read the complete case summary: Los Angeles Businessman, Utah Fuel Plant Operators and Employees Sentenced to Prison for Billion-Dollar Biofuel Tax Fraud Scheme

DuPont - La Porte

DuPont Chemical Company and Former Plant Operations Leader Pleaded Guilty and were Sentenced for their Roles in a Chemical Release which Killed Four Employees at the La Porte, TX Facility

Statute: Clean Air Act, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Violations

A November 2014 chemical release at a DuPont plant in La Porte, Texas killed four employees and injured others. The release drifted offsite posing a serious risk of injury to the public. The cause of the chemical release was a knowing failure to implement statutory regulations required under the Clean Air Act. On April 24, 2023, DuPont pleaded guilty and was sentenced for negligent endangerment under the Clean Air Act. DuPont was sentenced to pay a $12M fine, make an $4M community service payment to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and serve a term of probation for 2 years. Ken Sandel, former operations unit leader at DuPont, also pleaded guilty and was sentenced to one year probation.

• Read the complete case summary: DuPont and former employee sentenced for plant explosion that killed four

COVID-19 GCLEAN

New Jersey Businessman Sentenced for Defrauding Over 75 Victims of More Than $2.7 Million in Scheme to Sell Fraudulent Coronavirus Disinfectant Products>

Statute: Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), Title 18 of the U.S. Code

From March 2020 through May 2021, Paul Andrecola manufactured products under the brand name “GCLEAN”. Andrecola used EPA pesticide registration numbers, belonging to another company, on his products and marketed them as effective at killing coronavirus. He used these fraudulent representations to make more than 150 sales of unregistered pesticides for a profit of more than $2.7 million. The purchasers of these unregistered pesticides included schools, a medical clinic, police and fire departments, DoD and other federal government agencies.  On December 8, 2022, Andrecola was sentenced to 60 months of incarceration, three years of supervised release, and forfeit $2.74M after pleading guilty to knowingly selling an unregistered pesticide, wire fraud and making false statements to the United States.

• Read the complete case summary: Burlington County Businessman Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Defrauding over 75 Victims of More Than $2.7 Million in Nationwide Scheme to Sell Pesticides Falsely Billed as Registered with EPA and Approved to Kill Coronavirus

Affordable Towing

Missouri tow company owner sentenced to 24 months incarceration for illegally tampering with emission control devices on his fleet of tow trucks

Statute: Clean Air Act

Dennis Cleveland, owner of Affordable Towing, conspired with others and caused numerous trucks in his fleet of heavy-duty diesel tow trucks to be tampered with in violation of the Clean Air Act. The DPF systems on the tow trucks were eliminated to avoid maintenance expenses on emissions control systems and lower fuel costs. Cleveland continued operating his illegally modified fleet of tow trucks after pleading guilty and being warned by the court that continuing such operations would violate his plea agreement. On July 7, 2023, Cleveland was arrested by the U.S. Marshals for violating the conditions of his release. Cleveland was held over until his sentencing on September 19, 2023, at which time he was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison and ordered to pay a $255,000 fine for one count of conspiracy and one count of tampering with a Clean Air Act monitoring device.

• Read the complete case summary: Two Business Owners Plead Guilty to Illegally Tampering with Emissions Controls

Electron Hydro – Puyallup River

Washington based construction company, and its owner, sentenced for illegally discharging into the Puyallup River

Statute: Clean Water Act

Electron Hydro LLC, without permits and under the supervision of owner Thom Fischer, placed 2,400 square yards artificial field turf, containing 16 cubic yards of crumb rubber, onto the Puyallup River riverbed and dam, as part of a temporary bypass channel. They covered it with a plastic liner and diverted the Puyallup River over it. Days later the liner ruptured, discharging the crumb rubber and turf into the river. On May 5, 2023, Electron Hydro, LLC was sentenced to pay restitution in the amount of $745,000 and a $245,000 criminal fine to be paid to Pierce County, Washington. Fischer was sentenced to 364 days in jail with 364 days suspended, and two years of probation and he was ordered to pay a criminal fine of $5,000.

• Read the complete case summary: Electron Hydro dam owner pleads guilty to operating an unlawful hydraulic project

Friendly Auto Repair

Owner of North Carolina auto repair company sentenced for performing fraudulent vehicle emissions tests

Statute: Clean Air Act

Friendly Auto Repair (FAR) in Charlotte, NC, which was owned and operated by Jamal Saymeh, performed fraudulent vehicle emissions testing in violation of the Clean Air Act. FAR was manually entering vehicle identification numbers into On-Board Diagnostic (OBD) testing equipment, which allowed FAR to change the vehicle’s county of registration from an area of non-attainment requiring vehicle emissions testing, to a county that does not require testing. Additionally, FAR was changing the designation of truck types from light duty to heavy duty, allowing the vehicle to evade vehicle emissions testing. A review of testing and registration data showed the business performed approximately 1000 inspections a month charging between $80.00 and $150.00 for fraudulent inspections. On May 1, 2023, Saymeh was sentenced to serve twelve months and a day of incarceration, two years of probation, a criminal fine of $1,202,288, and pay restitution of $82,000 to the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT).

• Read the complete case summary: Charlotte Auto Repair Auto Shop Owner Is Sentenced And Fined For Violating The Clean Air Act

View, Inc.

Mississippi manufacturing plant sentenced for illegally discharging nearly 250K gallons of illegal wastewater per day over nine years

Statute: Clean Water Act

View, Inc. (View) in Olive Branch, MS. View is a manufacturer of electrochromic glass products, which is used in commercial and industrial building applications. View is headquartered in Milpitas, CA but has a manufacturing facility in Mississippi, which employs between 300 and 400 people. Over a nine year period, from mid-2012 to June 2021, View discharged 250K gallons per day of wastewater, which contained metals such as cadmium, chromium, copper, nickel, and zinc, into the DeSoto County Regional Utility Authority's (DCRUA) Metro Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW), without a pretreatment permit. View's unpermitted discharges were a major contributor to the permit limit violations committed by DCRUA and caused pass-through or interference at a POTW, resulting in actual harm to the environment. On August 15, 2023, View was sentenced to 3 years of probation, a $3 million fine and ordered to make a community service payment of $450,000 to DCRUA, to be used for the sole purpose of expanding wastewater treatment capacity in DeSoto County. View also paid a $1.5 million civil penalty to the Mississippi Commission on Environmental Quality.

• Read the complete case summary: California Company Sentenced for Illegally Discharging Wastewater From Olive Branch Manufacturing Plant

Elliot Global Partners

California Man Admits to Fraud Scheme Involving Renewable Fuels

Statute: Clean Air Act, Title 18 of the U.S. Code

Ijomah Oputa created a fake renewable fuel importing company, Elliot Global Partners (EGP), and fraudulently generated Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) on volumes of biofuel which he claimed to have imported from foreign biofuel producers. No such imports had occurred. Oputa generated false documentation of the alleged imports, including fake classified correspondence with a branch of the United States military. He then sold the fraudulent RINs to a RIN trading company for approximately $426,000, which he deposited in a bank account he opened using a stolen identity. On May 19, 2023 Oputa pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 40 months of incarceration, 36 months of supervised release, $495,786.97 in restitution, and $462,200 in forfeiture.

• Read the complete case summary: California Man Admits to Fraud Scheme Involving Renewable Fuel Credits

Al’s Seattle Barrel Company

Al’s Seattle Barrel Company and Co-owner Sentenced Related to the Illegal Dumping of Hazardous Waste

Statute: Clean Water Act

Al’s Seattle Barrel Company (Seattle Barrel) is a steel and plastic drum recycler and supplier located in an environmental justice area in South Seattle, Washington. Since at least 2014, Seattle Barrel generated over 66 tons of hazardous/dangerous waste which it falsely claimed had been sent to an approved Treatment, Storage, Disposal, or Recycling (TSDR) facility.

In January of 2018, sampling of Seattle Barrel facility effluent confirmed the facility was regularly discharging material with a pH of 12 or greater; however, they provided false information to state regulators indicating they had not been discharging any effluent since 2016. On September 8, 2023, Louie Sanft and the Seattle Barrel and Cooperage Company were sentenced. Sanft was sentenced to 18 months of incarceration, 36 months of supervised release, a fine of $250,000, and a special assessment of $3,500. Seattle Barrel was sentenced to 60 months of probation and a special assessment of $14,000. 

• Read the complete case summary: Seattle Barrel cleaning company and its owner sentenced for ten-year water pollution scheme

Prince William Sound Aquaculture Corporation

Prince William Sound Aquaculture Corporation sentenced for disposing of hazardous waste which caused severe injury to an employee

Statute:

Prince William Sound Aquaculture Corporation (PWSAC) disposed of RCRA hazardous wastes at its Cannery Creek Hatchery resulting in an injury to one of its employees. The hatchery is situated along a remote shoreline in Alaska’s Prince William Sound that is owned by the U.S. and leased to PWSAC by the U.S. Forest Service (USFS). On July 27, 2018, a PWSAC maintenance supervisor at the hatchery directed two employees to burn the contents of 55-gallon waste drums in a bonfire. Among the wastes burned were combustible fuels, including jet fuel. One of the drums exploded, severely burning an employee’s face, neck, ears, and hands. The employee was evacuated by aircraft to a hospital in Seattle, Washington for treatment. Further investigation disclosed PWSAC was storing additional wastes, including a drum of waste jet fuel determined to be a characteristic hazardous waste for ignitability. On February 16, 2023, PWSAC was sentenced to a $450,000 fine, $550,000 in restitution, and 5 years of probation. As part of its probation, PWSAC will follow an environmental compliance plan requiring it to prepare an environmental compliance manual and undergo site visits by a third-party auditor, among other requirements. 

• Read the complete case summary: Fish Hatchery Sentenced to Pay $1 Million in Fine and Restitution