Summary

Quick Transportation, Inc., Stockton, CA, agreed to pay a $100,000 fine as a result of a plea agreement in U.S. District Court in Sacramento, for illegally transporting military decoy flares. Because the flares are made of compressed nitrogen and become dangerous under extreme heat or pressure, they are classified as a hazardous material and are required to be shipped under constant surveillance. The flares were to be shipped under surveillance from Indiana to California, but Quick Transportation delivered the flares to Union Pacific Railroad. The flares were discovered when the train transporting them derailed near Lodi, CA, in January 1998. The company owner, Neal Brady, who also owns Available Shippers and Ready Transportation, has paid restitution of $50,000 for the damage caused by the spill of the hazardous materials. OIG investigated this case jointly with the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and the FBI. DOT Operating Administrations, specifically, FRA, FMCSA, and RSPA, assisted in the investigation.