HAWKINS—Tuesday, Hawkins tire recycling center's property owner turned himself in to the Wood County Sheriff's Department.
This comes after the tire facility caught on fire last week, filling the city with toxic smoke and causing some residents to evacuate.
Robert Joshua Foster, 48, admitted to illegally dumping the tires. However, he did not say how the tires were set on fire. Currently, Foster faces charges for the illegal dumping of more than 1,000 pounds.
Hawkins residents say they are not surprised Foster turned himself in.
"He was lying to us all the time, because he said that he was going to take them from the truck and put them on the shredder, and then from the shredder to another truck and ship them to Shreveport, but he wasn't doing that," says Hawkins resident Edward Lee.
Fire investigators determined the fire was started by arson. Officials say at this point, Foster is not suspected of arson.