Ex-Signal Peak safety manager sentenced in case involving accident coverup
Billings Gazette
The former safety manager at the Signal Peak Energy LLC underground coal mine near Roundup was sentenced Tuesday for conspiring to make false reports about a mine accident in which an employee had his fingers crushed, resulting in partial amputation.
Curtis Floyd, 47, of Billings, was sentenced to two years of probation and fined $2,000, said U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich. Floyd pleaded guilty in January to an information charging him with conspiracy to submit false statements in mine records.
In a plea agreement reached in the case, the parties agreed that a term of probation was appropriate. U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen presided.
“As Signal Peak Energy’s safety manager, Floyd had a duty to make sure miners were safe and protected and to document and report accidents. Floyd not only failed the miners, but he also flaunted mandatory mine health and safety reporting regulations. We expect mines and their managers to operate in compliance with all regulations, and when they don’t, they will be held accountable,” U.S. Attorney Laslovich said.
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