American Distillation, Inc. (ADI), a chemical processing company based in Navassa near Wilmington, pleaded guilty to knowingly discharging tert-Butyl alcohol and other pollutants into the Cape Fear River, violating the federal Clean Water Act. The company’s owner, Andrew J. Simmons, Jr., also admitted guilt for failing to pay federal taxes. These pleas follow an earlier admission of guilt by Barry Darnell White, ADI’s former plant manager, who confessed to discharging pollutants into the river on behalf of the company.
“This was not an accident, and it was not a paperwork violation,” said U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle. “ADI deliberately decided to dump harmful chemicals into a North Carolina river to increase profits. When corporations choose pollution over safety, we will hold them criminally accountable and enforce the law without hesitation.”
Chuck Carfagno, Special Agent in Charge of the EPA’s criminal enforcement program in North Carolina, commented: “The Cape Fear River features diverse habitats, from freshwater streams to a vital saltwater estuary, supporting rare aquatic species and old-growth forests. The company’s multi-year illegal discharges of industrial waste poses a serious threat to the River’s water quality and is harmful to ecosystems. Today’s guilty plea demonstrates that the EPA and its partner agencies are committed to protecting the environment and pursuing those who threaten our natural resources.”
Special Agent in Charge Donald “Trey” Eakins from IRS Criminal Investigation’s Charlotte Field Office added: “The defendant willfully engaged in a long pattern of violations of the internal revenue laws. Tax evasion is not a victimless crime, it affects every American by stealing resources vital to fund schools, maintain public infrastructure, and enhance social welfare.”
Assistant Special Agent in Charge Keith Squires from the Environmental Protection Agency Office of Inspector General stated: “The defendant’s alleged repeated dumping of chemical-laden wastewater into North Carolina rivers and streams was a brazen violation of the Clean Water Act that defrauded the EPA and endangered communities that rely on those waters. Today’s action shows the EPA OIG’s firm commitment to working with our partners to defend our waterways and hold violators fully accountable when they attempt to profit at the expense of human health and the environment.”
Court records show that ADI was founded in 1992 for producing industrial grade ethyl alcohol. The company regularly accepted large amounts of tert-Butyl alcohol (TBOH) from customers—a flammable liquid classified as pollutant under environmental law—and stored distillation byproducts including TBOH in a 250,000-gallon tank called Tank 14.
While ADI held an EPA-issued permit requiring proper disposal of TBOH byproduct, beginning in late 2019 through 2024 it took in more chemicals than could be safely processed or removed according to legal standards. From 2020 through 2024, approximately five or six times per year, White released about 2,500 gallons each time from Tank 14 directly into a pipe leading to the Cape Fear River so operations would not have to stop for lack of storage capacity—an act motivated by concerns about financial losses if production ceased.
Congress established what is now known as the Clean Water Act (CWA) originally in 1948 and significantly revised it in 1972 with goals including restoration and maintenance of U.S. water integrity for ecological protection as well as human use such as drinking water supply and recreation. The CWA prohibits discharge of pollutants from any point source into national waters without a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit; this authority has been delegated since 1975 by EPA to North Carolina.
Assistant U.S. Attorney David Beraka is handling prosecution while investigations are being conducted by divisions within both EPA—including its Office of Inspector General—and IRS Criminal Investigation.
