NEW YORK — Nearly three years ago, a Bronx construction worker was crushed to death under piles of rubble while working on a building. Now four men have been charged in his death, which investigators say was entirely preventable.
Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark said it was the first time in his office’s history that charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide had been filed in a construction accident.
In August 2019, a four-story building under construction on 208th Street collapsed, killing worker Segundo Huerta. Prosecutors said workers carried nearly a ton of concrete blocks and bricks to the third floor, which was not properly secured.
They described the construction site as a “death trap waiting to happen”. The weight caused the floors to collapse, leaving Huerta, a 46-year-old father of five, trapped in a pile of steel and rubble.
“An unqualified company would have used fraudulent credentials, ignored monitoring requirements and building codes to build a dangerously unstable structure,” Clark said.
The owner of the company that the district attorney said was doing the actual construction was arrested for second-degree manslaughter. He was prosecuted and is on probation.
The owner of another business who acted as a general contractor and the superintendent of construction face charges of criminally negligent homicide. A former city employee is charged with second-degree robbery.
“A former employee of the New York City Department of Design and Construction was reportedly paid $3,000 for the use of his credentials, and he never visited the site,” Clark said. .
“Today’s announcement sends a strong message to the construction industry that job site negligence and accreditation will not be tolerated,” said Kazimir Vilenchik, Acting Commissioner of the Buildings Department of the city.
After Huerta’s death, the “Carlos Law” was enacted to increase fines and corporate liability for construction accidents. Huerta’s widow, surrounded by three of her five children, said she still seeks justice for her husband.
One of the defendants, owner of one of the construction companies, is still at large. Authorities said they hope to make an arrest soon.