Daniel L. Couch Jr. Charged with Falsifying Mine Safety Records

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — Daniel L. Couch, Jr., Chief of Maintenance at the Paradise #9 Mine in Muhlenberg County, Kentucky, has been indicted on federal charges for falsifying mine safety records and lying to federal inspectors — putting miners’ lives at risk to cover his own failure to do his job.

The Grand Jury indictment alleges Couch, whose duties included conducting weekly fire suppression checks on electric equipment, failed to inspect the belt drive of coal seam 11 during the week of May 1 through 7, 2016. The checks were mandatory under federal safety regulations designed to prevent deadly mine fires.

On or about May 17, 2016, a Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) inspector from the U.S. Department of Labor reviewed the mine’s record book and discovered no inspections had been logged for that week. But when the inspector returned two days later, the record had mysteriously been altered — now showing that checks were completed on May 7, 2016, signed by “D. Couch,” with no hazards reported.

Federal authorities say the entry was a lie. Couch is accused of knowingly making a false statement to a federal inspector, claiming he had been underground at the mine and conducted the inspection on May 7, when in fact, he had not entered the mine or performed any check. That lie is now a separate federal charge.

If convicted, Couch faces up to 5 years in federal prison. As of now, his whereabouts are unknown, and law enforcement has issued no public alert for his arrest. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy Ream and investigated by MSHA’s federal enforcement team.

The indictment is an accusation only. Daniel L. Couch, Jr. is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. But in the dark tunnels of Kentucky’s coal country, where safety records can mean the difference between life and death, even the appearance of fraud cuts deep.