Roofing contractor pleads guilty to lying to OSHA

The owner of a construction company has pleaded guilty to making false statements and submitting false information to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in connection to an investigation over the safety of a job site it controlled, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday.

Luis Estrada of Bridgeport, Connecticut, allegedly told an OSHA investigator who noted suspected infraction of the Occupational Safety and Health Act in March 2018 at a project on Main Street in Bridgeport that he was not connected with roof construction, though he had been paid three checks totaling $11,000 for performing the work, the DOJ said in a statement.

The DOJ also alleged that when OSHA served Mr. Estrada with a subpoena for documents related to the roofing work, that he again denied being connected to the project.

He faces a maximum of five years in prison in connection to his plea, and is currently out on a $75,000 bond. Sentencing has not yet been scheduled.