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Obstruction of Justice, First Federal Prosecution Related to BP Gulf Spill Names Houston Engineer

Posted byHoumanitarian

(Mark Schleifstein, The Times-Picayune)
In the first criminal charge to result from the sweeping federal probe into the 2010 BP oil spill, a former BPengineer was arrested by FBI agents Tuesday on charges of obstruction of justice. He allegedly deleted hundreds of text messages from his iPhone that estimated the rate at which oil was spewing from the busted well.

Kurt Mix, who resigned from BP in January, was charged in a criminal complaint filed Monday in federal court in New Orleans. The complaint, supported by an affidavit from FBI Special Agent Barbara O’Donnell, was unsealed Tuesday.

Mix, 50, of Katy, Texas, assisted in efforts to stop the flow of oil after the April 20 explosion that sank the Deepwater Horizon and killed 11 workers. If convicted, Mix could face up to 20 years in prison for each count.

The criminal charges might help the Justice Department build a foundation for the multibillion-dollar claims it’s making against BP in a related civil case. Fines will be based on the amount of oil spilled, and scientific estimates of the flow rate provide the government’s basis for alleging 4.9 million barrels came out of the well. BP disputes those figures, but it has been fighting in civil court to keep internal documents about the flow rate secret. The criminal charges against Mix served notice that the government will use BP’s own estimates against the company.

And O’Donnell’s affidavit supporting the charges strongly suggests that BP knew more oil was coming out of the well than it was reporting to federal agents and the public, which could lead to charges that company officials made false statements to federal authorities. (Read more at the New Orleans Times Picayune)

RELATED: Two Years After Gulf Spill, First Arrest is Made (Fuel Fix)

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