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Three West Virginia Residents Plead Guilty to Asbestos Crimes

Release Date: 11/27/2002
Contact Information:


Teresa Libera 202-564-7873/[email protected]


(11/27/02) Elaine Mauck, Ambers Scott Rind, and Jess Mauck, all of Martinsburg, W.Va., entered guilty pleas on Nov. 19 in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia in Wheeling to crimes arising from the illegal removal of asbestos. All three were co-owners of a company called “Crim de la Crim.” Elaine Mauck pleaded guilty to illegally removing asbestos in violation of the Clean Air Act and faces a maximum sentence of up to five years in prison and/or a fine of up $250,000 when sentenced. Ambers Rind and Jess Mauck each pleaded guilty to illegally removing and disposing of asbestos under the Toxic Substances and Control Act and each man faces a maximum sentence of one year in prison and/or a fine of up to $25,000 when sentenced. An EPA Criminal Investigation Division (EPA/CID) Special Agent testified that the defendants hired and exposed untrained workers to asbestos without protection, during the removal and disposal of asbestos from the building. The case was investigated by EPA/CID, the FBI and the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection with the assistance of EPA’s National Enforcement Investigations Center. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Wheeling, W.Va., and the Environmental Crimes Section of the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C.