A California landlord has been sentenced to just over one year in prison and three years of supervised release by a Nevada Court after he violated the federal Clean Air Act during renovations.
Bobby Khalil, 46, was indicted by a grand jury in connection with Clean Air Act asbestos violations. He pleaded guilty to failing to safely remove asbestos prior to renovation at two apartment complexes, with this trial superseding an indictment for the same offences at a separate complex in 2019.
As part of the guilty plea, he oversaw renovation activities at two apartment complexes and admitted to the court that during those renovations, he knew there were asbestos-containing materials and that the individuals he hired to assist were untrained.
Under the Clean Air Act, asbestos work-practice standards require ACM to be removed prior to any general renovations beginning; the materials must be kept wet at all times, and disposed of at facilities authorized to accept asbestos waste.
It was heard in court that at both the sites, untrained labourers did not use any kind of control measures for personal or environmental safety when removing the asbestos.
It was also heard that Khalili attempted to evade law enforcement by having dumpsters removed from one renovation site prior to an inspection from a Department of Air Quality. At the second site, he instructed his lead contractor to lie to authorities about the ownership and management of the project. It was also alleged that he created a fake contract illustrating that another person was responsible for the project.
Following sentencing, Assistant AG Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, that the “sentencing demonstrates that cutting corners on asbestos abatement will not result in a slap on the wrist.”
“These are serious offences with serious consequences, and we will continue to work with EPA and our partners in U.S. Attorneys’ Offices to prosecute violations of the Clean Air Act’s asbestos safety regulations.”