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Fugitive Sought for Dumping Radioactive Oilfield Waste

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday that James Kenneth Ward is considered violent and dangerous

By Dillon Tabish

BILLINGS — Federal officials say a fugitive who escaped custody in Wyoming four years ago is being sought for the illegal dumping of radioactive oilfield waste in North Dakota.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday that James Kenneth Ward is considered violent and dangerous and should not be approached.

Ward was indicted in April in U.S. District Court in Montana on charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Prosecutors say he was paid by a company to dispose of hundreds of pieces of radioactive oil field waste known as filter socks, which are used to strain the sometimes-radioactive fluids produced during oil and gas exploration.

Instead of bringing the socks to a licensed landfill, prosecutors say Ward dumped them inside an abandoned North Dakota gas station.