WASHINGTON — On July 5th, federal agents in San Antonio, Texas arrested Richard Schmolke on charges that he smuggled more than 75,000 lb of R-12 refrigerant into the U.S., in violation of the Clean Air Act and federal customs laws.
According to the complaint, Schmolke and his associate, Edwin Reilly, allegedly shipped six large industrial refrigeration units to Venezuela for refurbishing and recharging with R-12 (The News, March 1, 1999).