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UNION CITY, Ga. - A community in Union City is outraged after someone dumped tires in their neighborhood. Union City Police have identified Donald Leverette as the man responsible for dumping about 12,000 tires in the Southwinds subdivision.
"Who does something like this?" Union City Mayor Vince Williams asked.
At Tuesday's news conference, law enforcement, city officials, and residents gathered together to discuss the major eyesore. Police believe tire shops paid Leverette to dispose the tires at an approved processor, but instead of doing that, police said Leverette pocketed the cash and dumped the tires illegally.
"We are still looking for him," Union City Officer Jerald January said.
Police said back in December they got a call from someone who said they saw a man dumping tires from a U Haul truck.
"They were able to get the license plate number and that ultimately led us back to Leverette," Jones said.
Police said they spoke with Leverette over the phone about the matter.
"He said he would clean it up, but as you can see, he didn't, so that's why we are here today," Union City Police Chief Cassandra Jones said.
According to authorities, it will cost roughly $50,000 to clean the mess up. The funds are expected to come from the government's reimbursement program.
"We will hunt you down and I promise you we will not stop until we do," Williams said. "This isn't just an eyesore this can cause
To say the Union City Mayor is upset is an understatement. He's outraged at the whole situation as are several residents.
"I was blown away by the amount of tires that are out here," Cralen Davis said.
Cralen Davis has lived in the neighborhood for years. He said he hopes the mess gets cleaned up soon.
"This has definitely made us more vigilant as a neighborhood," Davis said. "Sometimes light comes out of darkness."