Asbestos Scam Case Penalties Uncertain
1,550 companies that were scammed by an asbestos-removal company may never receive the $23 million that they are collectively owed, said a federal prosecutor. One of the companies scammed, Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science and Technology, paid AAR Contractor Inc. $114,000 in 1995 to remove asbestos from one of their buildings. The asbestos removal was done without water, water is required, and AAR assured concerned Milton J. Rubenstein officials that everything was being done according to regulations.
After the project, officials found 30 bags of asbestos left in their garage and had to hire another company to check the cleanup and to finish the job. Museum President Larry Leatherman said that "we could surely use the money, but I'm not counting on anything." AAR took shortcuts in asbestos cleanup, didn't follow federal regulations for removal, and misled clients with fraudulent lab tests for more than a decade.
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