Colorado Company, Two Executives Convicted of Fraud in Exporting CRT Waste
A waste-recycling company based in Englewood, Colo., and two of its executives, were convicted Dec. 21 of multiple counts of mail and wire fraud, obstruction and environmental crimes related to illegally disposing electronic waste and smuggling, said Immigrations and Customs Enforcement. Executive Recycling Inc. and its officers allegedly defrauded government and businesses by saying that it was disposing of cathode ray tubes (CRT) using Environmental Protection Agency-approved methods in the U.S., while it was actually exporting the waste abroad.
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Executive Recycling Inc. faces a $500,000 fine per count for the seven wire fraud counts, or twice the gross gain or loss. The corporation also faces a conviction for one count of failure to file notification of intent to export hazardous waste, which carries a penalty of a $50,000 fine per day of violation, or twice the gross gain or loss, and one count of exporting contrary to law, which carries a $500,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss.
Executive Recycling was an electronic waste-recycling business in Colorado, with affiliated locations in Utah and Nebraska, ICE said. The company collected electronic waste from private households, businesses and government entities. Executive Recycling Inc. was registered with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment as a "Large Quantity Handler of Universal Waste." Brandon Richter, as owner and CEO, was responsible for supervising all aspects of the company. Tor Olson, the vice president of operations, was responsible for running day-to-day operations.
The defendants exported electronic waste, including CRTs, to foreign countries, including China, ICE said. They regularly negotiated the sale of electronic waste to brokers who represented foreign buyers or who sold the electronic waste overseas, it said. The foreign buyers often paid the defendants directly. To transport the electronic waste, the defendants used shipping cargo containers which were loaded at the company's facility. The containers were then transported by rail to domestic ports for export overseas, ICE said. Executive Recycling appeared as the exporter of record in over 300 exports from the U.S. between 2005 and 2008. About 160 of which exported cargo containers contained a total of more than 100,000 CRTs.
Between February 2005 and continuing through January 2009, the defendants knowingly devised and intended to devise a scheme to defraud various business and government entities who wanted to dispose of their electronic waste, and to obtain these business and government entities' money under false and fraudulent pretenses, ICE said. The defendants represented themselves on a website to have "extensive knowledge of current EPA requirements." They also falsely represented that the defendant company recycled electronic waste "properly, right here in the U.S." and would not send the electronic waste overseas.
The defendants' misrepresentation induced customers to enter into contracts or agreements with the defendants for electronic waste disposal, ICE said. Each victim paid the defendants to recycle their electronic waste in accordance with the representations made by the defendants. Contrary to their representations, the defendants sold the electronic waste they received from customers to brokers for export overseas to the China and other countries, ICE said.