AG Kane files criminal charges against Marcellus Shale waste hauler

State Attorney General Kathleen Kane has filed 64 criminal charges against a Northumberland County company that hauls waste and equipment for the natural gas industry.

Editor’s Note: This article has been corrected. An edit has been made to clarify that Minuteman and its owner, Brian Bolus, were only dumping natural gas drilling waste, not burying it, though they buried other kinds of wastes.

The extensive list of charges include multiple counts of fraud and criminal conspiracy.

The investigation stems from allegations the Milton-based company, Minuteman (which includes Minuteman Towing Inc., Minuteman Spill Response Inc. and Minuteman Environmental Services Inc.) and its owner, 43 year-old Brian Bolus were dumping solid waste from gas drilling operations in several counties.

A statewide grand jury found Bolus and Minuteman overbilled every business with which they contracted by at least one hour per invoice, amounting to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

As StateImpact Pennsylvania has previously reported, Minuteman Environmental Services was raided by federal and state authorities last May.

“Brian Bolus and Minuteman blatantly exploited hard-working employees, dozens of businesses and the environment,” Attorney General Kane said in a statement. ”The laws are in place to ensure that all businesses are on a level playing field. When one company cheats, all good companies and the citizens of Pennsylvania suffer as a result.”

Bolus could not immediately be reached for comment.

Kane is also filing charges against members of Bolus’ family.

The grand jury found that siblings Robert “Bobby” Bolus Jr. and Debra Bolus, mother Julie Bolus and Sophie Gregory, the elder Bolus’s fiancée, were ghost employees and they conspired together to be eligible for group health insurance.

If convicted of all charges, Brian Bolus faces a maximum fine of $1.4 million.

The Sunbury Daily Item recently reported Bolus has filed for bankruptcy protection for Minuteman, but he issued a statement his business operations “will continue with a bright future ahead.”

Governor Corbett visited the company in February 2012 and touted it as an “American success story.” According to state campaign finance records, Bolus gave $10,000 to Corbett in 2009 and 2010.

Appearing at another Northumberland County business last June, Corbett said he was not well-acquainted with Bolus.

“I’ve met him twice,” Corbett said while touring ACF Industries in Milton.

Editor’s Note: This article has been corrected. An edit has been made to clarify that Minuteman and its owner, Brian Bolus, were only dumping natural gas drilling waste, not burying it, though they buried other kinds of wastes.