Man sentenced to help clean up East Cleveland after attempted dumping conviction

A Conneaut man has been sentenced to probation and ordered to help clean up East Cleveland as part of the city's crackdown on illegal dumping.

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Man sentenced to help clean up East Cleveland after attempted dumping conviction

Christopher Poklar pleaded guilty to felony attempted open dumping. Last week, he was sentenced to two years of probation and ordered to clean up what he dumped. Poklar must also spend eight days cleaning up other dump sites around East Cleveland.

The case began when a witness called police and said he saw the man's dump truck dump concrete and other debris in a field along Hayden Avenue back in August. Video showed the truck pass by with a load, and minutes later, pass back by empty.

When East Cleveland police stopped Poklar, he denied any wrongdoing, telling officers he had not been in the field and had not dumped anything. Officers informed him that illegal dumping in the city of East Cleveland is a felony.

Illegal dumping is a problem that has plagued the city for years. Donquell Howard, who lives nearby, said he wants it to stop.

"I wish it would stop because it makes our neighborhood look bad, stuff like that. People don't want to come here and invest money into the community because of that problem," Howard said.

East Cleveland first announced its crackdown on illegal dumping last June. Now, the city is pointing to cases like this one as a warning to others.

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East Cleveland teams up to stop illegal dumping

"Our message to anybody that wants to offload their debris or junk in our city is we are going to catch you and if we catch you, you're going to pay the price," East Cleveland Law Director Ken Myers said.

Howard said he is glad there are consequences.

"Lesson learned. I bet he won't do it anymore," Howard said.

City leaders hope the message echoes throughout East Cleveland.

"It's case by case. Every Christopher Poklar we catch is going to improve the city a little bit," Myers said.

The law director said there about half a dozen more illegal dumping cases still making their way through the courts.

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