Eastern Montana trucking company, oil processing plant charged in 2012 explosion near Baker
Woody's
The combined charges could result in a maximum penalty of 145 years in prison and fines totaling
In
However, the company didn't update its
The company continued shipping the natural gas condensate to the oil processing plant throughout the year, the indictment states, until an explosion at the facility on
Two tank trailers that contained the flammable liquid and were attached to Steen's semi also ignited, and the ensuing fire burned for eight days and destroyed the facility.
"
Five days after the fire started, the
Steen was separately convicted in 2015 for transportation of hazardous materials without a placard, a felony, and was sentenced to three years on probation and ordered to pay a
During the weeks after the explosion, Wood gave the insurance company and
Prosecutors also say that on
Based on the false documentation, prosecutors state, the insurance company paid out
Court documents don't indicate the ignition source that caused the explosion and fire, but in separate charges against Custom Carbon Processing, prosecutors cite a laundry list of ways in which the facility allegedly failed to minimize the risk of such an incident.
The indictment accuses the company, president
Last November the three defendants were indicted on charges of felony conspiracy and two violations of the Clean Air Act, including knowingly endangering others at the plant.
The indictment also cites an email that Hurst apparently sent to Margiotta on the day the facility opened, which reads, "The control panels must be moved asap with the explosion proof wiring. We also run the risk of killing someone, not only our operators but also our customers."
Federal prosecutors also accuse the men of ignoring repeated warnings from the facility operation's foreman that the operation "was creating a dangerous situation due to (the condensate's) highly volatile and flammable nature."
"On occasion, the foreman would attempt to refuse to accept the shipments of natural gas condensate, but
The separate indictment against the Custom Carbon Processing, Margiotta and Hurst was filed last December. On Tuesday, Watters set a jury trial date of
If convicted on all counts, the company could face a fine of up to
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