Kurt Mix, a 50-year-old former engineer for BP, was arrested on October 3, 2012 on charges of intentionally destroying evidence in connection with the Deepwater Horizon disaster.
Mix was charged with two counts of obstruction of justice in a criminal complaint filed in the Eastern District of Louisiana.
The charges against Mix stem from his alleged deletion of text messages and other records related to the amount of oil flowing from the Macondo well after the explosion on April 20, 2010.
According to court documents, Mix was a drilling and completions project engineer for BP and worked on internal BP efforts to estimate the amount of oil leaking from the well. He was involved in various efforts to stop the leak, including the Top Kill operation.
Mix allegedly deleted a text string containing more than 200 text messages with a BP supervisor on October 4, 2010, and another text string containing more than 100 text messages with a BP contractor on August 19, 2011.
At the time, BP’s public estimate of the flow rate was 5,000 barrels of oil per day (BOPD), while Mix’s internal estimate was much higher, indicating that Top Kill was unlikely to succeed.
If convicted, Mix faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 as to each count.
Related Federal Cases
- Inigo Albina, Obstruction of Justice, Louisiana 2013 · Louisiana
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- Steven W. McCann, Bogus Expense Deductions, Louisiana 2023 · Louisiana
- Vanessa Motta, Mail Fraud, Louisiana 2023 · Louisiana
- Michael Sapera, Bank Fraud, Louisiana 2015 · Louisiana
Key Facts
- State: Louisiana
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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