Illegal dumpers. (Screenshot from city of Detroit video)
The city of Detroit weekly removes more than 500 tons of illegally dumped materials around the city. Now, the city is getting aggressive in its effort to battle violators.
Mayor Mike Duggan and Police Chief James Craig announced Wednesday a program to bust dumpers using hidden cameras in strategic spots around the city.
“For too long, people have used our neighborhoods as dumping grounds because they could get away with it,” Duggan said in a statement. “With a lot of things that used to be tolerated in this town, like illegal graffiti, we’re not tolerating people who want to dump in our neighborhoods anymore. We are going to charge them and whenever we can we are going to use existing laws to seize the vehicle they used in this criminal activity.”
Detroit Police have been testing hidden cameras in a number of locations, and to date, have identified alleged illegal dumpers in 25 cases with the help of video images, the city said in a press release. By the end of September, the goal is to have dozens of hidden cameras around the city. The video will be reviewed daily by staff at the department's Real Time Crime Center.
"Whenever we can, we are going to use technology to our advantage,” Chief Craig said in a statement. “We are doing it effectively with Project Green Light and with this initiative we are using video technology to conduct investigations that begin with reports of illegal dumping made to the city through the Improve Detroit app. I believe the Detroit Police Department is going to be the trendsetter for other departments around the country.”
Here's some sample cases the city made as a result of the camera, according to the press release:
- On June 9, three Taylor teenagers were captured on video in a Detroit neighborhood dumping debris from a tree they had cut down the day before. Each of them was arrested and charged with littering and have pled guilty. The owner of their tree removal business, Jacob Balcewicz, also of Taylor, and who directed his employees to do the dumping, has been charged and currently is being sought by police.
- On July 2 & 3, Royal Oak resident Dennis Dantonio drove his red Nissan pickup truck into a Detroit neighborhood and dumped debris on multiple occasions. Dantonio was charged based on the strength of the video evidence and pled guilty to littering.
- On August 13, Detroit resident Cshakia Augustus allegedly drove her Dodge pickup truck and dumped several mattresses along roadway of a residential neighborhood. Investigators obtained a warrant for littering and Augustus has since been arrested.
