Police investigators intend to seek illegal dumping charges against a 67-year-old Newport Coast resident who is suspected of flinging used adult diapers outside the gated Laguna Beach neighborhoods of Irvine Cove and Emerald Bay multiple times over the past six months, according to police.
Police did not further identify the suspected dumper, who allegedly made many statements about his actions, though police declined to disclose his motive.
He was questioned Tuesday by investigators conducting surveillance on the man’s home and vehicles, which included a Bentley and Lexus. At 10:45 p.m., they followed the Lexus from the home and pulled over the driver near Reef Point, Capt. Jason Kravetz said. “Upon approaching the vehicle, they immediately saw a large bag of used diapers in the passenger seat,” he said.
The break in the case came the day before when officers called to the scene of freshly dumped diapers found an envelope addressed to a medical office in Fullerton, Kravetz said. One of the office employees lives in Newport Coast, Kravetz said, though he apparently is no longer employed there.
“Not only is it a biohazard to throw human waste onto a city street, but there were occasions when vehicles would drive over the diapers causing them to stick to undercarriages and tires. This caused the waste material to spread even greater distances,” Kravetz said.
Detectives will be working with investigators in Newport Beach, where diapers were also deliberately dumped, to present a combined case to the district attorney, Kravetz said. Conviction for illegally dumping waste is punishable by up to six months in jail.
