Summary of Criminal Prosecutions
FISCAL YEAR: 2013
1. PRINCIPAL DEFENDANT: Connie Marlene Knight
E.D. Louisiana 12-261
E.D. Louisiana 12-261
In the wake of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Knight impersonated a high-ranking Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) hazardous waste safety instructor and inspector in order to collect money from individuals who hoped to work on the cleanup effort that followed the spill.
Knight’s methods, which included creating a false federal identification badge declaring that she was an “OSHA Master Level V Instructor and Inspector.” In reality, OSHA has no such designation. Knight also created false federal identification badges for her employees, who believed that they were working for OSHA. The employees were residents of Southeast Asian fishing communities in Southern Louisiana, and provided Knight a way to access those communities. Knight held fake OSHA training seminars and assured attendees that they would receive lucrative employment working on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill cleanup once they paid for and completed her course. Knight did not, however, actually have any connection to the cleanup effort. Knight required each attendee to pay between $150 and $400 cash to enter a class. She claimed her classes satisfied the various safety requirements that all individuals were to complete in order to be employed at a Deepwater Horizon hazardous waste cleanup site. Knight’s classes lasted as little as two hours, while the legitimate certifications would take at least six days of classroom training and three days of on-site training. Though many of her attendees were Vietnamese, Laotian or Cambodian, Knight spoke only English at the classes, and all materials were in English. At least some attendees later gained access to hazardous waste cleanup sites based on the fraudulent certifications created by Knight.
Knight’s methods, which included creating a false federal identification badge declaring that she was an “OSHA Master Level V Instructor and Inspector.” In reality, OSHA has no such designation. Knight also created false federal identification badges for her employees, who believed that they were working for OSHA. The employees were residents of Southeast Asian fishing communities in Southern Louisiana, and provided Knight a way to access those communities. Knight held fake OSHA training seminars and assured attendees that they would receive lucrative employment working on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill cleanup once they paid for and completed her course. Knight did not, however, actually have any connection to the cleanup effort. Knight required each attendee to pay between $150 and $400 cash to enter a class. She claimed her classes satisfied the various safety requirements that all individuals were to complete in order to be employed at a Deepwater Horizon hazardous waste cleanup site. Knight’s classes lasted as little as two hours, while the legitimate certifications would take at least six days of classroom training and three days of on-site training. Though many of her attendees were Vietnamese, Laotian or Cambodian, Knight spoke only English at the classes, and all materials were in English. At least some attendees later gained access to hazardous waste cleanup sites based on the fraudulent certifications created by Knight.
September 21, 2012
Knight was charged with 3 felony criminal charges and 1 misdemeanor criminal charge for creating false identification documents an impersonating a federal official - violations of 18 U.S.C. 912, 18 U.S.C. 1028(a)(6) and 18 U.S.C. 1028(a)(1).
January 24, 2013
Knight pled guilty to the charges.
Press Release
Department of Justice
January 24, 2013
Individual Pleads Guilty to Id Fraud and Impersonating an OSHA Official in Wake of Gulf Oil Spill
Connie Knight Conducted Fraudulent Hazardous Waste Safety Training for Those Seeking Employment in Oil Spill Cleanup
Connie M. Knight, 46, previously of Belle Chasse, La., pleaded guilty in federal court in New Orleans today to three felony criminal charges and one misdemeanor criminal charge for creating false identification documents an impersonating a federal official, announced Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, and Dana Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana. According to the plea agreement, in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Knight impersonated a high-ranking Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) hazardous waste safety instructor and inspector in order to collect money from individuals who hoped to work on the cleanup effort that followed the spill. The plea agreement describes Knight’s methods, which included creating a false federal identification badge declaring that she was an “OSHA Master Level V Instructor and Inspector.” In reality, OSHA has no such designation. Knight also created false federal identification badges for her employees, who believed that they were working for OSHA. The employees were residents of Southeast Asian fishing communities in Southern Louisiana, and provided Knight a way to access those communities. From the time of the spill through the end of 2010, many fisheries were closed and Gulf fishermen were seeking other means of employment. Knight held fake OSHA training seminars and assured attendees that they would receive lucrative employment working on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill cleanup once they paid for and completed her course. Knight did not, however, actually have any connection to the cleanup effort. Court documents also describe the training seminars themselves. Knight required each attendee to pay between $150 and $400 cash to enter a class. She claimed her classes satisfied the various safety requirements that all individuals were to complete in order to be employed at a Deepwater Horizon hazardous waste cleanup site. Knight’s classes lasted as little as two hours, while the legitimate certifications would take at least six days of classroom training and three days of on-site training. Though many of her attendees were Vietnamese, Laotian or Cambodian, Knight spoke only English at the classes, and all materials were in English. At least some attendees later gained access to hazardous waste cleanup sites based on the fraudulent certifications created by Knight. Producing fraudulent federal identification documents carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. Possessing a fraudulent federal identification document carries a maximum sentence of one year in prison and a fine of $100,000. The two counts of falsely impersonating a federal employee each carry a maximum sentence of three years in prison and a fine of $250,000. This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division, with assistance from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the FBI, and investigators from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the Plaquemines Parish, La., Sheriff’s office. The case is being prosecuted by Patrick M. Duggan of the Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and Emily Greenfield of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana.
May 16, 2013
Knight was sentenced to 57 months incarceration and ordered to pay her victims $25,300 in restitution.
Press Release
Department of Justice
May 17, 2013
Individual Sentenced to 57 Months in Prison for Id Fraud and Impersonating an Osha Official in Wake of Gulf Oil Spill
Connie Knight Conducted Fraudulent Hazardous Waste Safety Training for Those Seeking Employment in Oil Spill Cleanup
Connie M. Knight, 47, previously of Belle Chasse, La., was sentenced to serve 57 months in prison in New Orleans federal court late yesterday for providing fraudulent hazardous waste safety training in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon explosion and spill, announced Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, and Dana Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana. In addition, Ms. Knight was ordered to pay victim restitution in the amount of $25,300. “On the heels of the largest environmental disaster in U.S. history, Knight illegally profited from a community already suffering from the impacts of the oil spill by impersonating a federal official and raising false hopes for employment. For that she is being held accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The Department of Justice is committed to environmental justice and will vigorously prosecute those who victimize vulnerable communities.” “Knight took advantage of an environmental disaster and the resulting vulnerabilities of an immigrant community,” said U.S. Attorney Boente. “Her callous crime focused on her financial gain, ignoring the potential harm to the restoration of the Louisiana coastal region.” On Jan. 24, 2013, Knight pleaded guilty to three felony criminal charges and one misdemeanor criminal charge for creating false identification documents and impersonating a federal official. Court documents explained how, in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Knight impersonated a high-ranking Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) hazardous waste safety instructor and inspector in order to collect money from individuals who hoped to work on the cleanup effort that followed the spill. Knight created and used multiple false federal identifications to bolster her credibility as an OSHA employee and to convince attendees, who were primarily from the Southeast Asian fishing community, that she could ensure them lucrative employment cleaning the spill. In reality, Knight did not have any connection to OSHA, to the cleanup effort, nor did she have training in hazardous waste safety. Daniel R. Petrole, Deputy Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General stated, “Today’s sentencing sends a strong message to those who would intentionally engage in fraudulent activity that compromises the integrity of the Department of Labor’s OSHA program.” “The defendant not only defrauded people who were desperate for jobs, but also created a risk that poorly trained workers could expose both themselves and the public to hazardous waste that was improperly handled or cleaned up,” said Cynthia Giles, Assistant Administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. Knight claimed her classes satisfied the various safety requirements that all individuals were to complete in order to be employed at a Deepwater Horizon hazardous waste cleanup site. Her fraudulent classes, however, lasted as little as two hours, while the legitimate certifications would take at least six days of classroom training followed by three days of on-site training. At least some attendees later gained access to hazardous waste cleanup sites based on the fraudulent certifications created by Knight. “OSHA will not tolerate fraudulent training or unscrupulous activity when workers' health and lives may be at stake,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels. “Inadequate training jeopardizes the safety and health of workers cleaning up hazardous waste sites.” At the sentencing, Federal District Court Judge Lance Africk considered statements from victims who recounted how Knight targeted the Southeast Asian fishing communities in southern Louisiana, many of whom did not speak or read English. Court documents explained that because many shrimp grounds were closed from the time of the spill through late 2010, Gulf fishermen had to seek other means of employment. To gain access to these fishermen and their families, Knight convinced young bilingual individuals from Southern Louisiana, who believed her to be an OSHA trainer, that she could be a source of employment for their struggling communities. She then used those individuals to publicize her trainings throughout the Vietnamese, Cambodian and Laotian neighborhoods. According to court documents, Knight required each attendee to pay between $150 and $300 cash to enter a class, and there were at least 950 victims in the Eastern District of Louisiana. After a short presentation in English, Knight would provide false completion certifications and tell attendees to ready their vessels for BP cleanup work, which she claimed would be coming any day. This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division, with assistance from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the FBI, investigators from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the Plaquemines Parish, La., Sheriff’s office. The case was prosecuted by Patrick M. Duggan of the Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and Emily K. Greenfield of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana.
STATUTE:
- Title 18 U.S. Criminal Code (TITLE 18)