Bio Recovery Corporation

Bio Recovery Corporation
Industry Bio-hazard and Crime scene cleanup
Founded 1998
Founder Ron Gospodarski
Website www.biorecovery.com

Bio Recovery Corporation is an American company that handles crime scene and bio-hazard cleanups.[1] The company assisted in the clean-up of the apartment of Craig Spencer, who worked with Doctors Without Borders, when he contracted Ebola, as well as a bowling alley he visited in New York.[1][2] It was later revealed in emails the company had mislead New York public health officials about their qualifications.

History

Ron Gospodarski founded Bio Recovery Corporation in 1998[3] out of his apartment.[4][5] Previously, he was a volunteer paramedic,[6] and worked as operations manager in a Queens district attorney’s office for six years.[7][8] After Gospodarski died, the company was sold to Sal Pane. Pane had a history of fraud accusations, including in 2010 when a Manhattan State Supreme Court judge issued an injunction against him and his mortgage companies.[9]

Work

Bio Recovery has cleaned accidents, suicide and homicide scenes, hoarding situations, anthrax outbreaks, sewage overflow, and other bio-hazard situations.[3] A cleanup requires personal protective gear including a Hazmat suit or single-use non-porous suits, double-filter respirators and chemical spill boots.[10][11][12]

Bio Recovery worked on the 2000 Wendy's massacre in Flushing, Queens where five employees were killed during a robbery orchestrated by a manager and former employee.[3][13] The cleanup took 65 certified technicians and two weeks to finish.[3] The company also handled the crime scene clean for the triple murder above the Carnegie Deli in Manhattan.[4][6] In 2001, Mayor Rudy Giuliani hired Bio Recovery to remove anthrax from several New York buildings.[1][2][14] The company also cleaned anthrax from the ABC-TV headquarters.[15] In 2003, the Regal Princess, a cruise ship struck by the Norwalk virus, was handled by Gospodarski and his team.[4][5][16]

The company worked on the beating of Glenn Moore by Nicholas "Fat Nick" Minucci in June 2005 and the murder of ex-cop Raymond Sheehan in February 2008. In January 2009, it worked on a home in Springfield Gardens, Queens when Vivian Squires, 86, was attacked by an intruder who she tried to fight off.[3] The company has also worked for large corporations including Marriott Hotels, Burger King, and CVS Pharmacies.[12]

Ebola cleanup

In October 2014, Bio Recovery worked to decontaminate the apartment in Harlem that belonged to Dr. Craig Spencer, a doctor at Columbia University-New York Presbyterian Hospital who worked with Doctors Without Borders to treat Ebola. The doctor contracted Ebola, and the company was responsible for cleaning his apartment.[2] The company also cleaned Gutter, a bowling alley Dr. Spencer visited.[1][17]

Fraud accusations

Controversy later erupted after it was reported that the company's new head, Sal Pane, had a history of fraud accusations and had misled the city about his experience with bio-hazardous cleanups.[18]

Following the Ebola cleanup in New York City, revelations slowly trickled out revealing a pattern of fraud from the company. Documents released months after the cleanup, including emails with city officials, revealed that the company claimed to have had training it didn't have at the time of the cleanup.[19] Following media investigations into the company, claims of certifications were taken down from the company's website.[20] The company also claimed to be working for the United States Army, which was denied by the Department of Defense and army medical officials.[21]

Long Island officials launched an investigation into Pane in 2015 over accusations he had bribed medical examiner's office workers.[22] An ex-employee of the company also claimed their name was forged on paperwork, saying they were the CEO of the company.[23] An investigation into Pane found him claiming decades of experience in the crime scene cleanup industry that he did not have.[24]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Benjamin Mueller (October 27, 2014). "For Crew in New York, Ebola Virus Is Fought With Scrub Brushes and Cleanser". New York Times. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 Laura Davison; Sonali Basak; Madeline McMahon (October 24, 2014). "Bio-Recovery Leads Cleanup of Ebola Spaces in New York". Bloomberg. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Lee Landor (March 26, 2009). "Queens' own crime-scene cleanup crew". Queens Chronicle. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 Andrew Jacobs (November 22, 2005). "Cleaning Needed, in the Worst Way". New York Times. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  5. 1 2 Jodie Davis (September 27, 2005). "Clean Sweep". NFIB. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  6. 1 2 Robert Dominguez (March 10, 2009). "Behind the scenes as a crew takes on the city's dirtiest job". Daily News. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  7. ↑ Jake Mooney (January 27, 2008). "After the Tragedy, the Tidying Up". New York Times. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  8. ↑ Mueller, Benjamin (1 November 2014). "For Man in Ebola Virus Cleanup, a History of Fraud". New York Times. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  9. ↑ Mueller, Benjamin (1 November 2014). "For Man in Ebola Virus Cleanup, a History of Fraud". New York Times. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  10. ↑ "Sales of $1,500 Hazmat Suits Surge on Ebola Fears". Fox Business.
  11. ↑ Jeanne Sahadi (April 15, 2005). "Six-figure jobs: Crime-scene cleaner". CNN. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  12. 1 2 Sebastian Montalvo Gray (May 16, 2014). "How to Clean Up a Crime Scene". Vocativ. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  13. ↑ Gabriel Falcon (January 12, 2012). "Crime scene cleanup business 'is not a job for everyone'". CNN. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  14. ↑ "The Staying Power of Anthrax". ABC. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  15. ↑ Linda Trischitta (January 28, 2008). "Business is cleaning up". Sun Sentinel. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  16. ↑ Evan Perez (November 19, 2002). "A Nasty Stomach Virus Repeatedly Sails on Liner". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  17. ↑ Seana Smith (October 28, 2014). "Ebola Fears Cost NYC Businesses $70K, and Counting". FOX. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  18. ↑ Mosendz, Polly (17 November 2014). "Report Uncovers More Questions About NYC Ebola Cleaning Company". Newsweek. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  19. ↑ "Documents Suggest Ebola Con Man's Cleanup Firm Claimed Training It Didn't Have". BuzzFeed.
  20. ↑ "Ebola Cleanup Company Removes "Certifications" From Website After BuzzFeed News Investigation". BuzzFeed.
  21. ↑ "Con Man Falsely Claimed That Ebola Cleanup Firm Was Working With The Army". BuzzFeed.
  22. ↑ "Long Island Officials Investigating Whether Con Man Sal Pane Bribed Medical Examiner Workers". BuzzFeed.
  23. ↑ "Key Signature From Con Man's Ebola Firm May Be Fake". BuzzFeed.
  24. ↑ "How New York City Hired A Con Artist To Clean Up Ebola". BuzzFeed.
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