Chemical company director to stand trial for Flint River oil spill

Dozens marched to Flint City Hall on April 25, 2024, considered the 10th anniversary of the start of the Flint water crisis | Ken Coleman
Nearly three years after a Flint-based chemical processing company released about 15,000 gallons of mixed oil and chemicals into the Flint River, the company's director is set to stand trial for his role in the release.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel on Friday announced that Rajinder Singh Minhas, of Rochester, was bound over to stand trial in the Genesee County Circuit Court on four felony charges for allegedly mismanaging and neglecting critical maintenance and upgrades at the Lockhart Chemical Company.
Minhas stands accused of four felony charges:
Falsely altering a public record, punishable by up to 14 years in prison;
Uttering and publishing a false or altered public record, also punishable by up to 14 years in prison;
Substantial endangerment to the public, punishable by up to five years in prison;
Discharge of an injurious substance to waters of the state, punishable by up to two years in prison.
'Serious violations by businesses that endanger the health and well-being of Michigan residents and our environment cannot be tolerated,' Nessel said in a statement. 'I am grateful to the talented prosecutors in my office, the dedicated experts from the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, Michigan State Police, the Genesee County Sheriff's Office, the Oakland County Sheriff's Office, and detectives of EGLE and [the Department of Natural Resource's] Environmental Investigation Section, who all played a significant role in advancing this case through the judicial process.'
Minhas also faces several misdemeanor charges including nine violations of the state's liquid industrial waste law and 11 other offenses for violating hazardous waste statutes.
A pretrial date has not been set, according to the Attorney General's office.
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