By Dean Narciso
Columbus Dispatch
COLUMBUS, Ohio — A woman who robbed a Dublin tanning salon thought she was home free last year after she tossed her sunglasses, baggy clothes and pistol into a Kroger trash can.
A Rumpke truck already had collected the store’s garbage and was en route to the Franklin County landfill.
But with Rumpke’s help, Dublin police found the evidence before it was dumped.
“It really made the case for us,” said Dublin Police Chief Mike Epperson. The woman was convicted of aggravated robbery.
Although many cities, including Bexley, Gahanna and Columbus, outlaw scavenging or Dumpster diving, trash is fair game for police.
Some departments even collaborate with trash haulers such as Rumpke and Waste Management to help fight crime. Today, the garbage man has taken on some common police roles.
Worthington officers have ridden along with trash collectors, and they once were loaned an empty truck to drive themselves. Police can grab trash themselves at night, but at homes with motion detectors, alarms or dogs, that can be a problem.
Police don’t easily share their secrets, especially details about using garbage to track down dope dealers, thieves and scammers.
“We use it all the time,” said Worthington Police Lt. Douglas Francis. “It’s not something that we like to talk about.”
Intercepting trash is one method of collecting evidence, which then can be used to get a search warrant to help catch criminals.
The practice can be useful, Francis said, but only at locations where there might be criminal activity.
“I can’t think of a worse use of time or money than randomly searching through people’s trash,” Francis said.
Trash haulers cultivate strong bonds with police and may train their workers to notice the unusual or suspicious.
Since 2004, Waste Management’s “Waste Watch” program has been training drivers to identify suspicious activities and help out in their communities.
“We’re collaborating with the local police forces. ... Our employees are providing an additional value to the community,” said Beth Schmucker, company spokeswoman. “It’s the perfect fit.”
Waste Management driver Ron McCrady found himself in the middle of a head-on crash along I-70 four years ago, while finishing his rounds in West Jefferson. He called 911 and immobilized an injured person’s head until medics arrived.
Rumpke trash hauler Darrell Davis has helped people along his route in Worthington who have slipped and fallen.
One elderly man in Dublin just didn’t appear to be well.
“I normally will walk up and help them back to their garage,” said Davis, 50, an eight-year employee with five children. “They’ll tell us we’re their heroes and bring you something warm to drink.”
He once found a set of keys in his truck’s bin. He tracked down the owner by driving up and down the street and pressing the horn button on the key fob until he heard a honk.
Rumpke drivers found a scratched but newer brief case along a Northwest Side street. Inside were several checkbooks and legal papers.
They traced it to a lawyer for a large corporation whose home had been broken into the day before.
Each employee received $100 gift cards for their honesty.
“Our employees have a much higher desire to serve the community than to take advantage of something that’s not theirs,” said Todd Wielinski, Rumpke’s operations manager.
Deputy sheriffs in Franklin and Pickaway counties have trained Rumpke workers to identify garbage common to methamphetamine labs.
“If all of a sudden you see at one stop an inordinate amount of milk jugs, Sudafed blister packs or small baggies, you know something’s not right,” said Larry Stone, Rumpke’s director of security.
Authorities busted a meth lab in Jackson County recently, with Rumpke workers helping to collect evidence, Stone said.
Police in Pataskala, where budgets have been gutted, have shown an interest in the training.
“If it helps to do our job better and there’s no more expense, I’d like to hear more about it,” said Pataskala Deputy Chief Bruce Brooks.
Because of failed tax levies, Pataskala has just 17 officers, less than half the number recommended by the FBI for a community of its size.
Still, some police are reluctant to reveal their techniques, or entrust too much information, to trash collectors.
“We’re a very untrusting organization,” said Sgt. John Slaughter of protecting Worthington’s police evidence. “We would not want them tipping off somebody if we were looking specifically at a target.”
Copyright 2009 Columbus Dispatch