A former chief inspector of New York City's buildings department may have incriminated himself twice while testifying in a criminal case against a crane executive—who was also his former boss. That was the view of lawyers for the victims of a fatal 2008 Manhattan crane collapse, for which James Lomma is on trial. He is accused of negligent homicide and other charges in the high-rise accident that killed operator Donald Leo and sewer worker Ramadan Kurtaj.
Prosecutors believe the crane supplied by Lomma had a poorly repaired turntable. In his testimony, Michael Carbone, the former regulator and onetime employee of a Lomma-owned company, said he examined the turntable before the accident. He was vigorously questioned about his ties to Lomma. Lawyers for the victims, who have civil suits against Lomma, believe Carbone's answers may have opened him up to perjury and corruption charges.