United States Attorney Russell Coleman for the Western District of Kentucky, released an announcement that eight officials from a now-bankrupt coal company in Kentucky were indicted on federal charges for conspiracy to defraud a government agency. The indictment alleges that officials rigged dust monitoring in underground mines, putting miners at risk.

The officials for Armstrong Coal in Kentucky were each charged with one count of conspiracy to defraud the government by “deceit, trickery and dishonest means” states the indictment. They were also charged with making false statements as to the results of tests required to be conducted every 60 days to protect certain “designated occupations” that is the dustiest and most dangerous assignments in a coal mine.

The officials allegedly ordered workers to remove dust sampling equipment and place it in clean air portions of the mine to get the desired readings, or they had workers without dust monitoring equipment work the dirtiest jobs. The indictments states that this happened at the company’s Parkway and Kronos mines between 2013 and 2015.

The indictment also states that officials fabricated and submitted dust sampling test results on days that the mine was not operating or shut down, and one superintendent mandated that a safety official take “whatever action necessary” to make sure the company passed sampling tests.

“Compliance with dust sampling programs is crucial to protecting miners against respiratory illness,” said Mine Safety and Health Administration Assistant Secretary David G. Zatezalo. “Deliberate disregard for the safety and health regulations that protect workers warrants the most severe penalties allowed under the law.”

Breathable dust is the main cause of pneumoconiosis, Black Lung Disease, in miners.

A miner who worked at the Parkway mine, Mike Wilson, said that the dust was so bad that he couldn’t see his hand in front of his face, and he was told to manipulate his dust monitor to get lower readings. He was diagnosed with black lung disease and, along with several other miners, approached mine safety attorney Tony Oppegard with their concerns. Oppegard said this happens throughout the industry, and it isn’t often that miners stand up to try and protect their health like they did in this case.

The Parkway Mine is no longer in operation and the Kronos Mine is under different ownership but still in operation.

Read the statement here and read more from the Associated Press here.