May 25th, 2005

A Cheyenne man is to spend eighteen months in federal prison after illegally handling asbestos. David Backus was accused of illegally handling the potentially deadly substance at Fort Morgan High School six years ago. He was sentenced for the offence just last week in Denver, and in addition to the sentence was ordered to pay over $15,000 to the school district.

The handling took place when Mr. Backus worked as an inspector for a company hired to remove asbestos from the library area of the school. He apparently stated that the school was safe for occupation, when in fact it was not, and he was also accused of not monitoring and evaluating the work carried out to the required standards.

The school was then closed down until it was safe for re-occupation following the incident in the fall of 1999. A number of agencies then investigated Backus and his colleagues, including the Federal Environmental Protection Agency, the Internal Revenue Service and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

In addition to the payment of the fine and the eighteen months in federal prison, Mr. Backus is to remain on supervised release for three years following the completion of his eighteen month sentence.