Senior Level Former Coal Company Official in Kentucky Charged for Defrauding Regulators About Risks To Miners

United States Attorney Russell M. Coleman announced the charging of an additional former supervisor and safety official from Armstrong Coal, in addition to the eight previous officials charged by a federal grand jury, for conspiracy to defraud an agency of the United States government by deceit, trickery, and dishonest means. The indictment charges that the conspirators sought to deceive federal mine safety regulators as to the daily levels of breathable dust at both the Parkway Mine of Muhlenberg County, Kentucky and Kronos Mine of Ohio County, Kentucky. Breathable or “respirable” dust is the primary cause of pneumoconiosis or “Black Lung” in miners.