Roofing Contractor Admits To Lying To Authorities About Safety Measures Following Worker's Death

ABINGTON Twp., Pa. (CBS) -- An Abington Township roofing contractor has admitted to lying to authorities about jobsite safety precautions after an employee was killed on the job in Philadelphia.

Investigators say 60-year-old James McCullagh failed to provide fall-protection equipment, including safety harnesses, to his employees.

And they say he lied to authorities, claiming he had proper safety measures in place, and instructed his employees to stick with the story.

In June 2013, one of McCullagh's employees was killed on the job after falling approximately 45 feet from a scaffold at the Old Zion Lutheran Church on North Broad Street in Philadelphia.

McCullagh pleaded guilty to making false statements, obstruction of justice and willfully violating an Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulation causing death to an employee.

He faces a maximum of 25 years in prison.