Feds charge Upper Big Branch superintendent with conspiracy
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The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia filed federal conspiracy charges against the superintendent of the Upper Big Branch mine, saying he impeded federal inspections leading up to the April 2010 explosion there that killed 29 miners.
Gary May, 43, of Bloomingrose, W.Va., was charged with conspiring to block Mine Safety and Health Administration enforcement efforts at the mine from his hiring as mine foreman in February 2008 through the deadly explosion on April 5, 2010.
PDFCharges filed in U.S. District Court in Charleston claim Mr. May gave other Upper Big Branch mine officials advance notice of MSHA inspections, allowing them to cover up mine safety violations that would have led to federal citations.
The charges also say he oversaw the falsification of record books and authorized officials at the mine owned by Massey Energy to direct extra air into sections of the mine where inspections were planned.
The felony charges carry a possible five-year sentence.
The F.B.I. and the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Inspector General are still investigating the explosion.
"Today's charge is a significant step in the investigation of events at the Upper Big Branch mine," Booth Goodwin, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of West Virginia, said in a prepared statement. "Our investigation of those events remains ongoing."
First Published February 22, 2012 10:01 am
