Minnesota
2 men told to pay $1 million-plus for shooting oil pipeline
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Two Minnesota men were sentenced last week to probation and ordered to pay back more than $1.1 million for damage they caused by shooting holes in an oil pipeline.
Tanner Sik, 21, of Ivanhoe, and Eric Weckworth-Pineda, 25, of Cottonwood, pleaded guilty in March to a federal charge of negligent discharge of a pollutant. Authorities say the April 2019 leak caused nearly 4,000 gallons of spill into the Yellow Medicine River.
Court documents show that Sik used a semi-automatic rifle to fire several shots into the Magellan Midstream Partners, L.P. diesel fuel pipeline on the northwest side of Cottonwood Lake in Lyon County. Weckworth-Pineda used the scope on his rifle to spot Sik’s shots, documents state. The two men returned to the area later in the day and saw that the pipeline was leaking, at which time they reported the spill to authorities.
The restitution was the result of operations to clean up the spill and repair the pipeline, prosecutors said.
Attorneys for the two men did not immediately respond to email requests for comment.
Mike
October 23, 2021 at 7:59 am
Tell the rest of the story. The $1.1 million is what it cost Magellan for conttamination clean-up and to repair the pipeline. The Federal EPA also spent $16,000 in the clean up efforts. The two men claim they aren’t able to pay the $1.1 million. So, the US Coast Guard National Pollution fund paid Magellan $1.1 million. You know, from that little critter called, “taxpayer money.” It gets even better. The two clowns that caused this situation were ordered to pay. . . .$30 per month for the next 20 years. Hmmmm. . . .but just on the surface, why does this amount appear shy of the $1.1 million taxpayer debit. Let’s test our theory! $60 (per month) X 12 (months) = $720 (per year). $720 (per year) X 20 (years) = $14,400.00. Yeah, that’s quite a bit “shy” of the $1.1 million mark!