NYC officials call for increased corporate fines in death cases

Two Manhattan law enforcement officials called for an increase in corporate criminal penalties Thursday to mark the two-year anniversary of the death of Carlos Moncayo, the immigrant laborer killed while working for a Long Island excavation subcontractor.

Moncayo’s employer, Sky Materials Corp., and general contractor Harco Construction were both convicted of manslaughter in the collapse of an unshored trench that killed him, but each faced a maximum penalty of only a $10,000 fine.

District Attorney Cyrus Vance and city Department of Investigation boss Mark Peters called that a “rounding error” in a joint statement, and said Albany should raise the maximum in corporate death cases.

Vance’s office agreed in a plea deal last week to drop separate charges of insurance fraud against Sky for underpaying premiums to New York’s insurance fund, did not require restitution to the insurance fund and gave the company probation on a charge of making false filings with the city Business Integrity Commission.

Related insurance fraud charges against Sky owner Michael Cholowsky of Manhasset filed a year ago remain unresolved.