CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) -- A new fight in the bankruptcy case of the troubled Shoosmith Landfill is putting nearly $30 million in transfers made prior to the bankruptcy filings under scrutiny -- and indictments of the former owners are also complicating the investigation. 8News previously r eported that Fred Gerald Nichols and Paul Lawrence McGee, both listed as living in Texas, are now listed as fugitives, court records show, after allegedly abandoning the landfill on Lewis Road in Chesterfield County and leaving the Commonwealth. Both men are listed as fugitives and have been indicted on a Class 4 felony charge of unlawfully abandoning a waste facility, along with two misdemeanor charges of willfully violating Virginia's Water Control Act, according to Virginia court records. PREVIOUS: Former owners of bankrupt Shoosmith Landfill in Chesterfield indicted, listed as fugitives The corporate entity Shoosmith Bros. Inc. filed for bankruptcy in June 2025 and later entered Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceedings. The company also faces the same criminal charges in connection with the landfill. The now-inactive landfill -- which had been neglected for several years -- still faces significant environmental and operational issues that have prompted Virginia lawmakers to seek answers. Problems include about 50,000 gallons of leachate, a potentially toxic wastewater stored on-site. ALL COVERAGE: Shosmith Landfill State Sen. Glen Sturtevant (R-Colonial Heights) previously called the situation a "preventable disaster" in a formal letter to state and local leaders on Tuesday, May 26. According to September court filings, bankruptcy trustee Lynn L. Tavenner argues that nearly $30 million in transfers to insider-controlled entities took place before the bankruptcy. At the same time, the landfill deteriorated, and recovering those assets could help pay any creditors and fund the $173 million environmental cleanup. Records indicate The Dale Quarry sold for about $25 million in 2024; roughly $23 million was transferred to Volunteer Enterprises, LLC after the sale and a total of nearly $29.88 million was transferred to Volunteer entities during the year before bankruptcy. Tavenner asked the bankruptcy court to compel Nichols, McGee and several Volunteer Enterprises employees to comply with Rule 2004 subpoenas, court filings show. Attorneys for Nichols, McGee and Volunteer Enterprises companies are fighting the trustee's requests, arguing that providing certain information could force them to give up evidence that could be used against them and would violate their Fifth Amendment rights ahead of their pending court proceedings. Their attorneys are asking the bankruptcy court to delay the discovery for at least 90 days and narrow some of the trustee's requests. Tavenner also believes she has discovered evidence suggesting that about $10 million used to acquire $150 million of debt was actually money belonging to one or more of the debtors and was diverted for insiders' benefit. Tavenner argues delays increase the risk that assets disappear and that taxpayers may ultimately bear remediation costs. Authorities estimated that it will cost about $173 million to close the landfill, and it could take 30 years to remove all the leachate. The trustee claims recovering assets could help offset those costs and keep creditors and local taxpayers from bearing the financial burden of the massive cleanup. ...read more read less