CONCORD, NH – A federal grand jury has indicted John R. Wiehl, of Franklin, New Hampshire, and the company he runs, Franklin Non-Ferrous Foundry, Inc., for unlawfully storing hazardous waste announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas and Michael E. Hubbard, Special Agent in Charge of the Boston Division of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, Criminal Investigation Division.

            Wiehl is the president of Franklin Non-Ferrous Foundry, Inc., which is located at 293 Sanborn Street in Franklin, New Hampshire.  The company manufactures a variety of metal parts for various industrial applications.  A byproduct of the company’s foundry operation is the generation or production of waste containing hazardous or toxic concentrations of lead and cadmium.

            Under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and under New Hampshire environmental laws, a generator of hazardous waste, like Franklin Non-Ferrous Foundry, Inc., may not store hazardous waste at its facility for more than 90 days without a permit unless it is authorized to do so.  The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act was enacted by Congress to address the nation’s growing hazardous waste disposal problem caused primarily by industrial operations.  The intent of the law is to protect human health and the environment by requiring the proper safe management of hazardous waste from the time it is created until the time it is disposed.

            The indictment returned against Wiehl and Franklin Non-Ferrous Foundry, Inc., alleges that the last shipment of hazardous waste from the foundry was in or around July, 2005.  Since then, the indictment alleges, the company, under Wiehl’s direction, illegally
accumulated and stored hazardous waste on-site.  Specifically, the indictment charges that on or about December 16, 2009, Wiehl and the company knowingly stored and caused the
storage of hazard waste, namely, lead and cadmium waste, at 293 Sanborn Street in Franklin for more than 90 days without a permit.  It also alleges that neither Wiehl nor the company had ever been authorized or granted a permit to store hazardous waste for more than 90 days.  
           
            Today, Wiehl appeared in U.S. District Court in Concord, New Hampshire, to be arraigned.  He entered a plea of not guilty and the Court ordered he be released on personal recognizance bail pending trial. A trial date is scheduled for October 19, 2010.
                       
            If convicted, Wiehl is facing a possible maximum sentence of two years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.  The company, if convicted, is facing a possible maximum fine of $500,000. 

            This case is being investigated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, Criminal Investigative Division and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark S. Zuckerman.

            An indictment is only an allegation and not proof of criminal conduct.  As in all criminal cases, the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

 

A COMPLAINT/INDICTMENT is merely an allegation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

 

 

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