A Real Crime

After an investigation begun in September by the Collin County Fire Marshal, two arrests for felony illegal dumping have been made. Acting on some personal items that were found at an illegal dump site near CR 364, investigators were able to trace the trash to a property owner who had hired someone to clean up a rental home and haul the trash to the landfill.

With the assistance of the County Sheriff’s Office and the cooperation of the property owner, the trailers used by the suspects were tracked, resulting in the discovery of two dump sites near the Trails of 1827 subdivision (north of Altoga, south of Blue Ridge) on November 15th and 23rd. In the process of tracking the trailer full of trash to the second dump site on the evening of November 23rd, investigators caught the suspects in the act of illegally emptying the trailer.

The two suspects, Eduardo Salazar and Eusebio Salazar, are brothers and undocumented aliens both living in McKinney. They confessed to illegally disposing of the trash that evening, and Eduardo also admitted responsibility for the illegal dump site found on November 15th.

The suspects are being charged with felony illegal dumping, Eduardo with two counts and Eusebio with one count. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of up to two years in state prison and a fine of up to $10,000. They are currently being held in Collin County Jail on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainers. Eduardo has previously been deported three times from the United States, and could face an additional illegal dumping charge from the September incident that initially prompted the investigation.

All three illegal dump sites mentioned were cleaned up by County Public Works staff. The September dump site contained over one ton of trash, the November 15th site 1.2 tons, and the November 23rd site 1.3 tons of trash.

Fire Marshal’s Investigator David Toler has been heading this investigation.

These arrests, the third and fourth of the year, are the first under a Collin County illegal dumping initiative approved by the Commissioners Court and involving the collaboration of several county offices: Public Works, Fire Marshal, Sheriff, Constables, and Public Information. Under this initiative, more resources are being dedicated to addressing and preventing illegal dumping throughout Collin County through law enforcement, clean up, surveillance and public awareness and education.

You may also view our new video public service announcement about illegal dumping.

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