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PA OHIO MAN CHARGED IN PESTICIDE CASE

Release Date: 04/04/97
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PA OHIO MAN CHARGED IN PESTICIDE CASE

FOR RELEASE: FRIDAY, APRIL 4, 1997

OHIO MAN CHARGED IN PESTICIDE CASE

Lutellis Kilgore of Elyria, Ohio, was charged in U.S. District Court in Cleveland, Ohio, on March 21, with three counts of violating the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and one count of making false statements to federal investigators. Kilgore allegedly applied the insecticide methyl parathion in a manner inconsistent with its labeling to more than 60 properties without being certified to apply this chemical. The spraying led to a $20 million publicly-funded clean up of the affected properties which was conducted by EPA, the Ohio Department of Agriculture and the Health Departments of the cities of Lorain and Elyria. Methyl parathion is toxic to the nervous system and is only approved for outdoor agricultural usage where sunlight causes it to rapidly degrade. When applied indoors, methyl parathion does not readily degrade and exposure to it can cause vomiting, headache, diarrhea and even death in humans. Kilgore is also charged with distributing methyl parathion to non-certified applicators and allegedly falsely informing federal investigators that he was not storing the chemical at his residence. Kilgore faces a maximum of one year imprisonment and/or a fine of up to $100,000 on the three FIFRA counts and a maximum of five years imprisonment and/or a fine of up to $250,000 on the false statement count. The case was investigated by EPA's Criminal Investigation Division.

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