Demolition Supervisor Pleads Guilty to Unlawful Asbestos Removal

Edward E. Carroll pleaded guilty Feb. 5 to two counts of knowingly violating the federal Clean Air Act by ordering his employees to remove two sections of the InterRoyal Mill in 2000 without properly handling its asbestos tiles.

U.S. District Judge Peter Dorsey set sentencing for April 25. Each count carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.

Under an agreement with the U.S. Attorney's Office, the remaining four counts against Carroll were dropped in return for his guilty plea.

Carroll admitted to supervising the demolition activity at the mill site in September and October 2000; to knowing that the building contained asbestos materials; and to willfully proceeding with the demolition without removing the contaminating materials.

Court documents also cite an agreement drafted earlier that year by Carroll and former First Selectman Paul Sweet that would have given Carroll's company permission to raze the entire mill in exchange for the salvageable bricks and wood. The agreement was never signed.

Dorsey stressed that he is the one who will ultimately decide Carroll's sentence, but that it will be based on a report to be compiled by the probation office.

Also according to the agreement with the federal government, Carroll may be required to pay restitution to the employees who worked for his company, Farmington Recycling and Demolition, which did the demolition work. He may also have to pay additional money for the required cleanup of the area around the demolition site.

Assistant U.S. Atty. Shawn J. Chen prosecuted Carroll's case. In a release Wednesday U.S. Atty. Kevin J. O'Connor said his office will “continue to vigorously prosecute those who knowingly expose others to environmental hazards,” noting that this matter is the latest in a series of similar cases.

The federal Environmental Protection Agency is currently securing the fence that surrounds the mill site and posting no trespassing signs. EPA workers are also removing low-level PCB contaminants from the site. The Day (Connecticut)