A man was arrested after being caught living illegally on national forest grounds for almost a decade, and is now facing up to five years in prison.
The US Forest Service received multiple reports that, inside the Tonto National Forest in Arizona, there were several large structures, multiple constructed fire pits, years of accumulated waste, and household items dispersed throughout roughly an acre of forest.
Responding officers encountered Mark Gatz, a 65-year-old Arizona man who, over the course of a year, would continually ignore warnings and citations, and federal arrest warrants for violations regarding illegal campfires, building structures on federal land, and unauthorized residence.
A US Forest Service officer called it “one of the worst residential cases he has seen”
Gatz was spotted by officers along a two-track dirt trail in an area popular for hiking and mountain biking. As per The Independent, officers observed that the campsite he occupied contained approximately 1,000 pounds of trash, a canopy area being used as a vehicle parking spot, a makeshift cooking station with multiple frying pans, and five gallons of motor oil.
In general, campers are limited to a 14-day stay within a 30-day period. As Gatz was evidently staying beyond that, as well as erecting structures and dumping personal property, he was, by law, engaging in unauthorized residential use.
He was eventually arrested on June 25 and told authorities he had been living in the forest for “about eight years”, and in that particular spot for around two years
He is accused of several crimes including living on forest grounds, construction and using a residence on national forest system lands, leaving refuse, and leaving a fire without extinguishing it, amongst many others.
Gatz is set to appear before a federal judge on July 6. He faces up to five years in prison.
For more on national parks, check out our coverage of the national park raising puppies on a 24/7 livestream, or the celebrity wolf in Yellowstone that was killed after rewards exceeded $31,000.
