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PA CORP. GEN. MAN. SENTENCED FOR HIS ROLE IN P. RICAN OIL SP.

Release Date: 10/4/96
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PA CORP. GEN. MAN. SENTENCED FOR HIS ROLE IN P. RICAN OIL SP.

FOR RELEASE: FRIDAY, OCTOBER 4, 1996

CORPORATE GENERAL MANAGER SENTENCED
FOR HIS ROLE IN PUERTO RICAN OIL SPILL

On Sept. 26, Pedro Rivera, General Manager of Bunker Group Puerto Rico, was sentenced to six monthsconfinement in a half-way house two years of supervised release, 120 hours of community service and fined $10,000 for his role in the Jan. 7, 1994, spill of more than 750,00 gallons of oil in the waters off of Puerto Rico's Escambron Beach. The spill, which cost more than $90 million to clean up, led to a record $75 million in criminal fines for co-defendants Bunker Group Puerto Rico, Bunker Group Incorp., and New England Marine Services. At the time of the spill, the beach had been in pristine condition and had been an important source of tourist revenue. However, the spill caused the closure of the beach at the height of the tourist season, seriously affecting the local economy. The spill occurred when the barge, Morris J. Berman, which was carrying nearly 35,000 barrels of fuel oil, broke loose from the tugboat, Emily S, after an improperly repaired tow cable broke while all but one of the crew were asleep. Capt. Roy. A McMichael, Jr. and First Mate Victor Martinez previously pleaded guilty to violations of the Clean Water Act. The convictions in the Escambron Beach Oil Spill were the result of close cooperation between agents of the EPA Criminal Investigation Division, the U.S. Coast Guard and the FBI.

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