A Buffalo man has been sentenced for violating the Clean Air Act Asbestos Work Practice Standards in connection with the Kensington Towers project.
Ernest Johnson, 42, of Buffalo, N.Y., was convicted and sentenced to two years of probation by U.S. District Court Judge Richard J. Arcara.
Johnson, the president of Johnson Contracting of WNY, Inc., was hired to conduct asbestos abatement activities at six buildings at the Kensington Towers Apartment Complex, located at 1827 Fillmore Avenue in Buffalo.
During the asbestos abatement project, which lasted from June 2009 to January 2010, Johnson and his employees failed to adequately wet regulated asbestos during stripping and removal operations, and caused regulated asbestos to be dropped down holes cut through the floors in Building A-1.
This is the fourth defendant to be sentenced as part of the Kensington Towers asbestos abatement project. In addition to Rai Johnson, other defendants who have pleaded guilty include JMD project monitors Brian Scott, Evan Harnden and Chris Coseglia and current and former public officials responsible for certifying the project’s compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including Donald Grzebielucha, William Manuszewski, and Theodore Lehmann.
The conviction was the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency – Criminal Investigation Division, under the direction of Special Agent-In-Charge, William V. Lometti; Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-In-Charge Brian P. Boetig; Special Agents of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development – Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent-In-Charge Rene Febles; and Investigators of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Police, BECI, under the direction of Captain Frank Lauricella.
The investigation revealed that each building at Kensington Towers was found to contain 63,000 square feet of regulated asbestos containing material. Johnson’s company was paid to remove the hazardous material, but instead, they put residents and workers at risk.
Johnson’s sentence is a stark reminder that environmental crimes will be aggressively prosecuted and punished. The public has a right to know that those who put our health at risk will be held accountable.
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