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MONTANA DEVELOPER CONVICTED OF CLEAN WATER ACT VIOLATIONS
Release Date: 07/27/2001
Contact Information:
FOR RELEASE: FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2001
MONTANA DEVELOPER CONVICTED OF CLEAN WATER ACT VIOLATIONS
Luke C. Hester 202-564-7818 / [email protected]
Luke C. Hester 202-564-7818 / [email protected]
In an unprecedented prosecution, David Allan Phillips, a Montana land developer, was convicted on July 12 of felony conspiracy to violate the Clean Water Act (CWA), of seven CWA felonies, and of seven CWA misdemeanors. This is the first case where a Federal jury in Montana has convicted an individual of conspiracy to violate the CWA. The offenses occurred when an attempt was made to develop land near Phillipsburg, Mo. The area was being developed for recreational home sites valued at several hundred thousand dollars each. They were marketed nationally with false assurances that all required permits had been obtained, including those required under the CWA for wetlands. Two of Mr. Phillip’s associates, Mitch Buday and Larry Zinger, previously pled guilty to conspiracy charges relating to these violations. When sentenced, Phillips faces a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine on each felony count and one year imprisonment and a $100,00 fine on each misdemeanor count. The case was investigated by EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division with assistance from the Montana Department of Environmental Quality and the Internal Revenue Service. The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Missoula, Mo.
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