Former EPA fugitive Joseph DeMatteo of Clark County, NV, has been sentenced to serve 5 months home detention, with a three year probation term following the detention. DeMatteo was one of 10 Nevada-certified emissions testers indicted for falsifying vehicle emissions test reports in Las Vegas.
The Clean Air Act makes it a crime to knowingly alter or conceal any record or document that is required under the Act.
“Today’s sentence demonstrates that individuals who knowingly violate our nation’s environmental laws and then flee the court’s jurisdiction will be caught and brought to justice,” says Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “Abusing emissions testing responsibilities puts communities’ air quality at risk. With information provided through the EPA fugitive’s list, we were able to work with the public and other law enforcement agencies to capture and complete the sentencing of a defendant who attempted to circumvent the law.”
DeMatteo and the other defendants were engaging in a practice known as “clean scanning” where the identification number of a vehicle that cannot pass the emissions test (or is not present for testing in the first place) is entered into the computer system, but then a different car that can pass the test is actually tested.
Las Vegas is required to perform rigorous emissions testing because it currently violates ozone and carbon monoxide standards.
For a full list of current EPA fugitives, visit www.epa.gov/fugitives
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