For at least a decade, workers at two North Carolina fuel companies conspired to mix contaminated fuel into clean fuel loads, deliver the mixture to more than 100 gas stations across the state and sell it to drivers who had no idea what they were pumping.

WRAL's 5 On Your Side spoke with two North Carolina residents involved in an ongoing federal lawsuit. 

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Stanley Somerville of Burke County and Michael Genwright of Caldwell County brought the lawsuit against Quality Oil Company LLC and affiliate Reliable Tank Line LLC, which serve hundreds of gas stations in the Southeast. Somerville and Genwright are seeking class-action status, seeking to represent others who purchased fuel sold by Quality Oil for the four years prior to May 29, 2025, when the lawsuit was filed. 

How the lawsuit claims it worked

In the complaint, Somerville and Genwright allege that when fuel at a station became contaminated or mixed with another product, the companies pumped it out, took it to one of their properties and stored it in tanker trailers.

The plaintiffs allege that workers were then directed to add hundreds of gallons of that mixture to other fuel loads without testing exactly what was in it. Those loads were delivered to at least 130 stations, where the fuel was sold to unsuspecting drivers, the plaintiffs allege.

The lawsuit doesn’t provide a complete list of those stations. Quality Oil serves hundreds of stations, according to its website.

Quality Oil and Reliable Tank Line said in an August court filing that they believe their fuel delivery and sales practices comply with North Carolina law.

In a statement to WRAL, Quality Oil said the lawsuit lacks merit.

“Quality Oil has built its reputation over generations by upholding the highest standards of integrity, honesty, and service. These core values guide every aspect of our business and remain at the heart of how we serve our customers each day. We believe the legal filing is completely without merit and look forward to vigorously defending ourselves in court. We remain committed to transparency and to earning the trust of our customers, as we have for decades.”Quality Oil Company

One delivery described in detail

The lawsuit traces a purported delivery on Nov. 28, 2023. It alleges that a trailer held contaminated, mixed fuel removed from a fuel station known as Go Gas #4. A second trailer picked up fuel at the Colonial Pipeline terminal in Greensboro before arriving at the company’s Winston-Salem property, the plaintiffs allege.

Images included in the complaint purport to show the trailers parked beside each other. The plaintiffs allege fuel from one of the trailers was transferred into the other, which then drove to a Quality Plus station in the Morganton area.

The plaintiffs allege that more than 1,000 gallons of the mixed fuel were unloaded into underground tanks at that station and eventually sold to customers. The complaint includes images of plaintiffs Stanley Somerville and Michael Genwright buying gas there.