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NEW MEXICO COURT SENTENCES TWO MEN FOR ILLEGAL WASTE DUMPING
Release Date: 02/22/2002
Contact Information:
FOR RELEASE: FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2002
NEW MEXICO COURT SENTENCES TWO MEN FOR ILLEGAL WASTE DUMPING
Luke C. Hester 202-564-7818 / hester.luke@epa.gov
Luke C. Hester 202-564-7818 / hester.luke@epa.gov
Two men were sentenced in the New Mexico District Court in Las Cruces concluding a state investigation that was assisted by EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division. Richard Jerome, President of Valley By-Products of Vinton, Texas, and Henry Medina, owner of Southwest Septic Service in Las Cruces, N.M., were found guilty of violating the New Mexico State Water Quality Act. Jerome was sentenced to pay a $200,000 fine and serve five years’ probation. Medina was sentenced to pay a $25,000 fine and serve 18 months probation. Valley By-Products is a plant that renders animal parts into useful products. Between 1997 and 1999 the defendants illegally disposed of more than a half-million gallons of rendering plant wastewater and animal wastes at two sites in New Mexico. One was a landfill operated by Medina west of Las Cruces. The improper disposal of rendering plant wastewater can contaminate groundwater supplies and create a public health risk. The case was investigated by the State of New Mexico, the Texas Natural Resources Conservation Commission and EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division. It was prosecuted by the New Mexico State Attorney’s Office in Las Cruces.
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