(The Associated Press circulated the following article on October 4.)
LAFAYETTE, La. — Twelve people are accused of inventing a family reunion in Eunice to claim a share in the $65 million legal settlement for people injured by or evacuated because of a derailment there in May 2000.
Although the lot where the people say they had a tent, barbecue pits and a band is now vacant, it was occupied by two houses at the time of the derailment, and neighbors said they could not remember any such event, said Terry Hoychick, an attorney for Union Pacific Railroad Co.
A federal indictment brought Monday charged the 12 people, most of them from the Lake Charles area, with fraud.
Their claim was among more than 200 rejected by special masters appointed by the court to oversee the payout of settlement money from the class action suit brought by more than 12,000 people and businesses.
At the request of U.S. District Judge Richard Haik, FBI agents sat in on settlement hearings to see whether any of the questionable claims amounted to criminal fraud. The fraud charges brought Monday are the only ones so far.
“The investigation is not yet complete,” U.S. Attorney Donald Washington said. “It just takes time to work our way through it.”
Hoychick said some other questionable claims were made by people who said they were visiting or shopping in Eunice at the time of the derailment, which forced the evacuation of much of the town after three rail cars carrying hazardous materials exploded.
“It was pretty clear somebody was making up some stuff,” Hoychick said.
A fraud conviction can bring up to 20 years in prison, though first-time offenders rarely get the maximum sentence.