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Mom and daughter confront tree dumper in Detroit

Posted at 6:38 PM, May 19, 2016
and last updated 2016-05-19 18:38:20-04

Illegal dumping is a never ending problem in Detroit and neighbors are getting fed up. 

That’s why, when Kate and Brittany Young spotted a guy doing wrong, the mother, daughter duo confronted him with camera rolling.

Wednesday morning the two were at the Citgo gas station in Redford on Telegraph near Puritan at the Detroit boarder.  As Brittany was pumping gas, she noticed a guy drag tree debris from the gas station property, across Telegraph Road.

“I hopped in the truck, said 'we got to go, that guy is about to dump across the street'.” Brittany Young told 7 Action News.

And that’s exactly what happened. 

Kate grabbed her cell phone, started recording, and confronted the guy. 

“I want to bring back the City of Detroit.” said Kate Young. “I want to make it pretty again and clean. When people dump, it just stays there.”

After confronting the guy, Young called neighborhood camera crusader, Jonathan Pommerville.  “He is my hero.  He has inspired us.”

Pommerville arrived and questioned a gas station employee about the dumping, then he contacted police. 

Even though the guy only dumped tree debris, Pommerville says the illegal dumping adds up, harming the environment and sending a signal that it’s okay because it’s in Detroit. 

“The reason he didn’t do it in Redford is because Redford wouldn’t tolerate it," he says."Neither is the City of Detroit.”

The constant illegal dumping has residents fed up and fired up. “Detroit isn’t crap to me.” said Brittany Young.  “Detroit is my home.”

Click on the video player to watch Ronnie Dahl’s full report.

Have a story for Ronnie?  Send her an email at ronnie.dahl@wxyz.com.

In Detroit, you can report illegal scrapping, illegal dumping or graffiti by calling the Detroit Police tip line, 313-235-4359 or by emailing scrapgrafdump@detroitmi.gov.

You can watch Pommerville’s complete confrontation on his YouTube page:
https://www.youtube.com/user/fochnut