Three More BP Officials Will Be Charged In Oil Spill

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Two sources tell NPR that three more BP officials will be charged in relation to the BP oil spill, which dumped more than 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico in 2010.

The individuals facing charges are former BP well managers Donald Vidrine and Robert Kaluza. Another high ranking official, David Rainey, the former head of Gulf of Mexico exploration, will be charged with downplaying the spill to lawmakers. Another lower ranking BP employee will face insider trading charges.

Bob Habans, a lawyer for Vidrine, told NPR early Thursday he would have comments after he reviewed any charging documents. A lawyer for Rainey signaled he would vigorously contest the charges.

Previously, only one other person had been criminally charged. BP engineer, Kurt Mix, was charged with obstruction of justice for allegedly deleting text messages after the spill.

Copyright 2012 National Public Radio. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

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