United States Attorney's Office District of Connecticut
Press Release

January 22, 2008

Kevin J. O'Connor, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that TIMOTHY ARCIOLA, 37, of Dark Entry Road, Washington, Connecticut, was sentenced today by Senior United States District Judge Ellen Bree Burns in New Haven to 15 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release. Judge Burns also ordered ARCIOLA to forfeit $15,000. On May 11, 2007, ARCIOLA pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to violate the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO).

According to documents filed with the Court and statements made in court, ARCIOLA, while a sales representative at Automated Waste Disposal, Inc. (AWD), conspired to perpetuate a system, commonly called the "property rights system," in order to allow participating carters to artificially inflate their prices and leave waste removal customers with no option but to retain the service at increased rates. In this scheme, which targeted both commercial and municipal customers, participating carters agreed to quote inflated prices to customers controlled by other carters.

In telephone conversations intercepted pursuant to a federal wiretap, ARCIOLA and several co-conspirators discussed the logistics of fixing certain accounts in several Connecticut markets. ARCIOLA also passed messages from a supervisor to a participating carter to coordinate pricing in the area. In one intercepted conversation, ARCIOLA was asked if he was comfortable with passing such a message. ARCIOLA responded that it would not be a problem.

To date, 33 individuals and 10 businesses have been charged with various offenses stemming from the long-term investigation into the waste-hauling industry in Connecticut and eastern New York.

This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation Division, and the United States Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General and the Connecticut State Police. The United States Marshals Service, the Drug Enforcement Agency's Office of Professional Responsibility, and the Connecticut Department of Correction have provided critical assistance in the Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Michael J. Gustafson, Raymond F. Miller and Henry K. Kopel are prosecuting this case.

CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
thomas.carson@usdoj.gov