Two firms have been fined over £1 million following the death of a worker who was buried alive in a trench collapse in Surrey in June 2020. Gheorghita Arsene, 33, known as Geo, died when a deep ditch collapsed on him at a site in Banstead. After a three-month trial at the Old Bailey, Appledorn Developments Limited and T Vaughan Limited (TVL) were found guilty of breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. Contracts manager Anthony O'Connor admitted to failing in his health and safety duties. Appledorn Developments Limited, now in liquidation, was fined £500,000. Judge Judy Khan KC noted that the company had prioritized cost-cutting over safety. TVL was fined £650,000, plus £40,000 in costs, with the judge stating that while the firm had safety systems in place, they were not properly implemented. TVL was given six years to pay the penalty. O'Connor received a 10-month suspended sentence for 18 months, plus 150 hours of unpaid work, after being found to have had "actual foresight" of potential harm. The incident occurred at a Park Road site where a care home was being rebuilt. Mr. Arsene was replacing a damaged pipe inside a 10ft excavation created by a three-tonne digger. He was clearing dirt with a shovel and pickaxe when the trench walls gave way. A digger driver shouted a warning, but Mr. Arsene took only two steps before being buried. His colleague ran for help as workers tried to uncover his face and body. Emergency services arrived, but paramedics struggled to revive him due to the heavy dirt around him. Trapped in the trench, chest compressions were impossible, and he was pronounced dead at 2:44 pm, an hour after the collapse. Inspectors found that no trench supports were installed, and excavated earth was piled right beside the edge. In mitigation for O'Connor, Mark Balysz KC said his client deeply regretted the tragic death and his role. "He clearly regrets the catastrophic mistake he made in allowing the work to continue in relation to the excavation," Mr. Balysz said. O'Connor was TVL's most senior manager present at the site that day. Mitigating for TVL, Prashant Popat KC said the firm had taken the incident seriously. "This incident has been taken most seriously by TVL. In the days after the incident, TVL and everyone in the company from the top down were deeply troubled and affected by Mr. Arsene's death," he said. The barrister noted that TVL, founded by Thomas Vaughan in 2010, had a "small close-knit family-run company" ethos and had spent nearly £3 million on safety. He stated TVL's failings were less severe than Appledorn's and represented an isolated occurrence. Appledorn, unrepresented in court, entered liquidation in 2023 despite registering £2.5 million in assets a year earlier. Mr. Arsene's mother, Ienuta Arsene, observed the sentencing via videolink from Romania. In a statement, she described her son as a "good man" who worked to support his family. He called her on the day he died, saying he was in a deep trench and feared a collapse. Though concerned, she heard him promise that "nothing would happen" and the task would "soon be over." Regarding his loss, she said: "Nothing is the same any more. I have a depression that is eating me away and a constant feeling of loneliness. Everyone in the family was devastated by Gheorghita's death." She recalled their close bond, having previously donated a kidney to him following his renal failure. An HSE spokesperson stated: "Gheorghita Arsene's death was as horrifying as it was preventable." The HSE noted that Mr. Arsene died because "basic precautions were not in place to protect workers from the well-known risks that come with excavation work." The HSE added: "Anthony O'Connor had observed workers in the trench without adequate protection and was aware of the measures required to prevent a collapse. This case is a stark reminder that when basic safety standards are ignored, the consequences can be fatal. Companies and individuals alike have legal duties to protect workers and where they fail to do so, and we will not hesitate to take enforcement action. Our thoughts today are with Mr. Arsene's loved ones, as they mourn their loss."