AL Cesspool Service Corporation, Felony Clean Water Act Violations,…

A Queens-based cesspool giant has caved under federal pressure, pleading guilty to felony violations of the Clean Water Act for systematically dumping raw sewage into some of New York City’s most vulnerable waterways — including the notoriously polluted Gowanus Canal. A&L Cesspool Service Corporation admitted to knowingly bypassing legal disposal procedures, turning manholes at JFK Airport, Fort Wadsworth, and public housing complexes into illegal discharge points for pumped sewer waste.

The guilty plea, entered today in Brooklyn federal court before U.S. District Judge I. Leo Glasser, lands A&L Cesspool on two years’ probation and hits the company with $900,000 in penalties. The sum breaks down to a $375,000 criminal fine, $350,000 in forfeiture, and a $175,000 community service payment directed to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation for restoration projects in the Gowanus area. The resolution follows a joint investigation by the FBI and the EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division.

Despite holding a valid permit from the New York City Department of Environmental Protection allowing disposal only at designated treatment facilities, A&L Cesspool employees repeatedly flouted the rules. Court filings reveal a pattern of illegal dumping stretching across multiple boroughs — from airport infrastructure to public housing developments — with waste flowing directly into federally protected waterways. The company, one of the city’s largest cesspool service operators, now admits to one count of conspiracy to violate the Clean Water Act, one count of unlawful discharge into U.S. waters, and four counts of illegal dumping in violation of its permit.

“Today’s felony guilty plea and sentence demonstrate that polluters face serious consequences for violating the Clean Water Act,” said Robert L. Capers, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. “The Department of Justice is committed to prosecuting businesses who ignore their obligation to keep our waterways clean.” The case was handled by the Public Integrity Section, with Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lan Nguyen and Lauren Howard Elbert leading the prosecution.

FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney, Jr. slammed the company’s actions as not just illegal, but dangerously reckless. “Environmental laws, such as those violated by A&L Cesspool, are put in place to protect us from grossly negligent practices that threaten the cleanliness of our communities and put the public’s health at risk,” Sweeney said. “Circumventing procedures to properly dispose of pollutants is a serious crime, and those who engage in this type of activity won’t get away with it.”

Vernesa Jones-Allen, Special Agent-in-Charge of the EPA’s Criminal Investigations Division in New York, underscored the broader threat posed by rogue waste haulers. “Waste that is disposed of illegally jeopardizes the health and safety of the entire community,” Jones-Allen said. “EPA and its law enforcement partners will continue to pursue those who undermine our efforts to protect public health, and those who ignore the law must be held to account.” The Gowanus Canal, a Superfund site since 2010, remains under long-term remediation — now further burdened by corporate lawbreaking.