A trucking company was convicted 13 of federal charges for their hand in the oil processing plant explosion that injured three people.
The company and its owner, Woody’s Trucking and Donald Wood Jr., were found guilty on May 22, 2018. The explosion occurred December 29, 2012 at Custom Carbon Processing near Wibaux, Montana.
Woody’s truck was hauling natural gas condensate, a flammable hazardous material, to Custom Carbon Processing Inc. The material combusted while a tank was being unloaded, destroying the plant. The fire burned for eight days.
The injured workers filed lawsuits against Woody’s Trucking and Custom Carbon Processing. Woody’s then lied to insurance, reporting that their truck was hauling saline water, a non-hazardous material. As a result, insurance paid $250,000 to the injured men.
As it turns out, the truck was hauling hazardous material without proper documentation. The insurance company then sued Woody’s Trucking over the claim.
A 31-member jury endured six days of testimony before reaching a decision. According to The Lewiston Tribune, the convictions include conspiracy, wire fraud, mail fraud, transporting hazardous materials without proper documentation and obstructing an investigation. Woody’s also owes $645,000 for the incident.
Custom Carbon Processing now awaits federal charges of their own for failure to install explosion-proof wiring.
Woody’s sentencing is scheduled for October 4, 2018 at 1:30 p.m.