HARRISBURG – Criminal charges have been filed against a Warren County man who allegedly violated environmental laws by storing and burning solid waste on his property without a permit.
Attorney General Tom Corbett identified the defendant as Joseph Scuteri, 63, of Sheffield, Warren County. Scuteri is the owner and operator of a trash hauling business in Sheffield Township.
Corbett alleged that since 2004, Scuteri transported his customers’ trash to his business property where the waste was illegally stored and burned. According to the criminal complaint, Scuteri is also responsible for processing recyclable materials at the property without a DEP permit.
The criminal charges state that on July 12, 2007, agents conducted aerial surveillance of the Scuteri property and observed numerous piles of waste on the ground. Corbett said that an inspection of the property conducted after the aerial surveillance confirmed the presence of large amounts of metal and solid waste on the property as well as an area where waste had been burned.
Scuteri is charged with three counts of unlawful conduct under Pennsylvania’s Solid Waste Management Act, all third-degree misdemeanors punishable by up to one year in prison and a $25,000 fine.
The case will be prosecuted in Warren County by Chief Deputy Attorney General Glenn A. Parno of the Attorney General’s Environmental Crimes Section.
Corbett thanked the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection for their assistance and cooperation with this investigation.