Peter Margiotta, Failing to Surrender, Montana 2021

BILLINGS – In a shocking display of defiance, Peter Margiotta, the former president of Custom Carbon Processing, Inc., was sentenced to one day in prison for failing to surrender to begin serving an 18-month prison term for convictions stemming from the explosion of an oil processing plant in Wibaux, Montana.

Margiotta, 64, of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, was convicted of Clean Air Act violations in the explosion that injured three workers at the company’s oil processing plant in September 2019. A jury found Margiotta guilty of all three counts in an indictment charging him with conspiracy, Clean Air Act-general duty, and Clean Air Act-knowing endangerment in relation to the 2012 explosion.

The government alleged that on July 10, 2020, Margiotta was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison and was permitted to self-surrender to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons to begin serving his sentence. However, Margiotta failed to self-surrender by January 15, 2021, and his actions prompted a further investigation and charges of failure to surrender for service of sentence.

U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters presided over the case and sentenced Margiotta to one day in prison, consecutive to his 18-month sentence. The court documents showed that Margiotta was given three extensions of time to self-report to prison, with the third deadline for self-reporting to the Bureau of Prisons’ SeaTac Facility in Seattle, Washington, on or before January 15, 2021. Margiotta turned himself into law enforcement authorities in Sweetgrass on March 25.

The government and Margiotta agreed to a plea agreement that included a sentence of one day of imprisonment and the voluntary dismissal of any appeal of his previous convictions or sentence in the case involving Clean Air Act violations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan T. Dake and Eric E. Nelson, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney, prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Transportation.

Peter Margiotta, former president of Custom Carbon Processing, Inc., was sentenced to one day in prison for failing to surrender to begin serving an 18-month prison term for convictions stemming from the explosion of an oil processing plant in Wibaux, Montana. Margiotta was convicted of Clean Air Act violations in the 2012 explosion that injured three workers at the company’s oil processing plant.

Defendant: Peter Margiotta

Criminal Charges: Conspiracy, Clean Air Act-general duty, Clean Air Act-knowing endangerment, failure to surrender for service of sentence

City and State: BILLINGS, Montana

Exact Date: July 10, 2020, January 15, 2021

Sentence: one day in prison, consecutive to 18-month sentence

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