The Associated Press

BATON ROUGE - A Georgia man licensed in Louisiana to haul medical waste has been accused of storing more than five tons of used bandages, syringes, needles, blood and other body fluids in a warehouse instead of hauling it to a disposal site.

Christopher Troy Lee, 28, of Atlanta, owner of BioTech Environmental Inc., was indicted Wednesday on a state charge of illegal disposal.

The waste in the Baton Rouge warehouse could have harmed people because the warehouse is located near a school and homes, said Peter Ricca, an investigator with the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality.

Lee had a permit to haul the waste but was not licensed to store or dispose it, Ricca said.

Prosecutor Mark Pethke said questions about Lee's practices arose when a warehouse in Crowley leased by Lee's company caught fire Nov. 9, 2001. Firefighters discovered 20 tons of medical waste inside, Pethke said.

Shortly after the fire, DEQ inspectors reported finding 11,000 pounds of used bandages, gauze, syringes, needles and other biomedical waste at the company's Louisiana headquarters in Baton Rouge. The waste was packed into a warehouse and two trailers parked outside. The trailers were leaking, inspectors said.

Lee was ordered to clean up the site but fled the state instead, Pethke said. The Department of Environmental Quality paid a contractor nearly $40,000 to clean up the mess.

Lee now is jailed in Atlanta on three counts of dumping waste in public places, Pethke said. Investigators in Georgia said waste, including body parts, was collected and placed in rental trucks which later were abandoned.