This story has been updated with additional information, and the spelling of Zachery Dupert’s name has been corrected.
A Summit County grand jury this week indicted two men and a junk-removal business in connection with illegal dumping in Copley Township, the Ohio Attorney General’s office announced June 5.
DeShawn Dixon, 47, of Akron, faces charges of open burning and dumping of solid waste, operating a solid waste facility without a license, illegal disposal of construction and demolition debris and tampering with evidence. Zachery Dupert, 34, of Akron, and his business, SOS Junk Removal, are each charged with open dumping of solid waste and illegal disposal of construction and demolition debris.
“We have shined a light on this dumper,” Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said in a news release. “Taking a shortcut to get rid of your waste is not acceptable.”
The defendants allegedly disposed of solid waste illegally on two vacant lots that Dixon owns in Copley Township, according to the indictments. The properties – which Yost says are located near homes, playgrounds and wetlands – have been the site of several open burning incidents requiring fire department responses in recent years.
Dupert, who owns SOS, said in a Facebook post that he has been cooperative in the investigation.
“The property involved belonged to an individual who represented to me that all necessary permissions and approvals were in place,” Dupert wrote.
Once contacted about the matter, Dupert did not return to the property, he said. The incidents involving Dupert and SOS occurred between Oct. 30 and Nov. 17, according to the indictment.
Dupert said his company has always made efforts to dispose of materials in accordance with regulations and has extensive disposal records from “thousands of jobs performed over the years.”
Last year, Copley used grant funding from the state’s Shine a Light on Dumpers initiative to install a surveillance camera near the properties, Yost said. On multiple occasions, the camera captured SOS Junk Removal trucks entering the sites carrying loads of waste and debris and driving away empty.
Investigators with the attorney general’s Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation executed a search warrant at the properties in February, discovering household trash, carpet, furniture and other waste, as well as burned materials buried underground.
Summit County property tax records show Dixon owns property on Springfield Avenue in Copley.
Yost’s Environmental Enforcement Section will be prosecuting the cases in Summit County Common Pleas Court.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: 2 men, business charged, accused of illegal dumping in Copley
Reporting by Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Akron Beacon Journal | USA TODAY Network
