cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/15940107
Dennis Falaschi charged in multi-million dollar scheme as records show he wasn’t only one to take water from California’s farm region
A former California water official has pleaded guilty to conspiring to steal water in a deal with federal prosecutors in the state’s crop-rich central valley.
The Los Angeles Times reports Tuesday that 78-year-old Dennis Falaschi, who used to head the Panoche water district, entered the plea in federal court in Fresno. He also pleaded guilty to filing a false tax return.
Falaschi was accused in a case that alleged that more than $25m in water was stolen over two decades when it was siphoned from a federal irrigation canal through a secret pipe and sold to farmers and other water districts. The Panoche water district supplies irrigation for farmland in Fresno and Merced counties – much of it from the federal Delta-Mendota canal.
Authorities said in court documents that Falaschi wasn’t the only one taking water, but did not specify who else was involved. They estimated Falaschi stole less than $3.5m in water, a small portion of what they initially alleged had been stolen.
No. Im sorry, No. This has got to be The Onion. This is like the children’s cartoon Bond Villain version of a scheme. This is beyond insane. Come on!
it’s like we have all watched these dystopian future movies and instead of heeding their warning, we all said “hold my beer”.
As climate change continues to accelerate, expect more of these stories and expect them to soon start including violence.
Water cannons?
What do you mean children’s cartoon bond villain? Wasn’t taking over the water the plot in the second Daniel Craig Bond movie?