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Attorney
General Anne Milgram today joined Cape May
County Prosecutor Robert Taylor and Avalon
Police Chief David Dean to announce that
a Pennsylvania dentist has been charged
with dumping the needles and other medical-type
waste that washed up on the beach in Avalon
during the last week of August.
According
to Attorney General Milgram, Thomas McFarland,
59, of Wynnewood, Pa., was charged last
night with unlawful discharge of a pollutant
and unlawful disposal of regulated medical
waste, both third-degree crimes. McFarland,
who owns a house in the Avalon Manor section
of Middle Township, allegedly took his small
motor boat into Townsend Inlet at the north
end of Avalon on Aug. 22 and dumped a bag
of waste from his dental practice in Wynnewood,
Pa.
The
charges conclude an intensive investigation
conducted by the Attorney General’s
Environmental Crimes Bureau, the Avalon
Police Department and the Cape May County
Prosecutor’s Office.
“Thanks
to the great work done by this multi-agency
team of investigators, we can say with confidence
that this defendant’s dental practice
was the source of the medical waste on Avalon’s
beaches,” said Attorney General Milgram.
“We can say with equal confidence
that this was an isolated incident and that,
working with the Department of Environmental
Protection, we will keep New Jersey’s
beaches clean and safe through continued
vigilance and vigorous enforcement efforts.”
“I’m
very pleased with the cooperative effort
of all of the law enforcement agencies that
participated in this model investigation,”
said Prosecutor Taylor. “The detectives
in my office, the Avalon Police Department
and especially the detectives from the Division
of Criminal Justice did an excellent job.”
“I
could not be happier,” said Chief
Dean. “I feel like Chief Brody when
he got the shark.”
Beginning
on Saturday, Aug. 23, waste allegedly dumped
by McFarland was found washed up along a
one-mile stretch of beach at the north end
of Avalon, including approximately 300 “Accuject”
dental-type needles, 180 cotton swabs, a
number of blue and white plastic capsules
used to hold filling material for dental
work, and other items. Avalon closed beaches
several times as a result of the waste.
As
investigators from the participating agencies,
led by the Environmental Crimes Bureau,
worked to trace the dental waste using lot
numbers on the needles and other identifying
information, the Attorney General offered
a $10,000 reward on Aug. 27 for information
leading to the arrest and conviction of
the person responsible.
Certain
information that the investigators obtained
in the first days of the investigation pointed
them to a small number of dental practices
as potential sources of the waste, including
McFarland’s practice. That information
was kept confidential.
On
Sept. 2, McFarland went to the Avalon Police
Department and admitted dumping the dental
waste. After searching his beach house,
Boston Whaler boat and SUV in New Jersey,
investigators obtained a search warrant
for his dental office in Pennsylvania and
executed it yesterday. They discovered evidence
corroborating McFarland’s statement
that the waste came from his practice.
The
warrant complaint charging McFarland was
served on his attorney today. The third-degree
crimes carry a maximum sentence of five
years in prison and fines of up to $50,000
on the medical waste charge and $75,000
on the other charge. The charges are merely
accusations and the defendant is presumed
innocent until proven guilty.
Attorney
General Milgram credited the following investigators:
From
the Division of Criminal Justice Environmental
Crimes Bureau, the individuals who led the
investigation were Supervising Deputy Attorney
General Ed Bonanno, Lt. Jeffrey Gross and
Detectives Steven Ogulin, Stephen Politowski
and Dawn Ryan.
From
the Avalon Police Department, Chief David
Dean, Detective Ben Geary and the entire
department. From the Cape May County Prosecutor's
Office, Chief James Rybicki, Lt. Lynn Frame
and Detective Matthew Leusner.
In
Pennsylvania, from the Lower Merion Township
Police Department, Detective Charles Craig
and Patrolman Stieber. And from the Montgomery
County, Pa., District Attorney's Office,
Detective Mike Gilbert.
In
recent days, several syringes were found
on the beach in Ocean City, and a single
syringe was found washed up in Brigantine,
but those syringes are unrelated to the
waste found in Avalon. The syringes at the
other beaches are of the type that can be
used by patients to self-administer medicines
at home and are not considered regulated
medical waste. When improperly disposed
of, they sometimes travel through sewer
systems to the ocean and end up on beaches.
It
has been 20 years since New Jersey has had
a similar case in which an individual was
charged with dumping medical waste directly
into the ocean.
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