GARY | About a month ago, federal authorities raided the Gary Sanitary District, with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the FBI serving search warrants of district offices.

With the EPA as lead investigator, officials began pulling documents and interviewing staff in search of "evidence of environmental crime."

From what local environmentalists and former district officials say, authorities could be searching through a treasure trove of potential environmental misdeeds.

But exactly which possible misdeeds authorities are interested in has been cloaked in secrecy.

A month into the investigation, the U.S. Department of Justice has declined further comment.

Randy Ashe, an EPA acting special agent, confirmed the investigation is ongoing, but did not provide any details.

A May inspection by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management noted several recent violations by the district, including exceeding discharge limits 84 times from 2005 to September 2007, housing at least 25 pieces of broken equipment and filing improper or inadequate discharge monitoring reports.

The Times could reach neither a city attorney nor representatives from the Sanitary District for comment.