Criminal Charges Involving Kinzua Bridge Repairs

A former civil engineer with the state is facing criminal charges after a company received a no-bid emergency contract for repairs to the Kinzua Bridge. Attorney General Tom Corbett says 61-year-old James Eppely of Halifax was the manager for the project to repair the bridge – before it was damaged by a tornado in 2003 – and awarded a contract to a company that provided Eppley and his wife with an all-expenses-paid trip to London, England, worth nearly $5,000. He didn't report the trip to the state or his superviors at DCNR. Eppley is charged with a felony count of conflict of interest, tampering with public records and unsworn falsification. He's scheduled for a preliminary hearing Monday in Harrisburg. For more on this story, visit the 1490 NewsBlog