The charges include 11 felony counts of misconduct related to the deaths of 11 men in the rig explosion that triggered the oil spill.
Fire boat response crews spray water on the blazing remnants of BP's Deepwater Horizon offshore oil rig in this April 21, 2010, file photo provided by the U.S. Coast Guard.
Oil giant BP says it has agreed to pay $4.5 billion in a wide-ranging settlement with the U.S. government over the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
The London-based multinational also said in a statement today it agreed to plead guilty to charges, including 11 felony counts of misconduct related to the deaths of 11 men in the rig explosion that triggered the oil spill. It also pleaded guilty to a felony count of obstruction of Congress.
A person familiar with the settlement said two BP employees will also face manslaughter charges over the 11 deaths in the oil-rig explosion that triggered the spill. The person was not authorized to discuss the matter on the record and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Up to now, the only person charged in the disaster was a former BP engineer who was arrested in April on obstruction of justice charges. He was accused of deleting text messages about the company’s response to the spill.