News and Investigations

The Environmental Unit of the Polk County Sheriff’s Office arrested a Haines City man on Monday, July 19, 2021, on two counts of Felony Commercial Dumping (F3). 

57-year old Peter Kallinicos used his employer’s work truck to haul garbage away for a Poinciana family who paid one-hundred dollars to Kallinicos, thinking he was going to dispose of it properly. Instead, Kallinicos drove the garbage to the other side of Poinciana and dumped it in two undeveloped locations near Lake Marion Creek Drive and Homosassa Road. 

“I can’t make this anymore clearer; the people of Polk County are not going to tolerate illegal dumping, and neither are we. It’s an environmental issue and a quality of life issue…nobody wants garbage dumped in their community. If we catch you illegally dumping around here, we’re going to dump you off at the jail.” – Grady Judd, Sheriff. 

Detectives first became aware of the first dumpsite on July 18th. Among the refuse were a bed mattress, box springs, old carpet, and a large wooden picture frame. These items were partially on the roadway. 

The second dumpsite was located about .3 miles away and contained a dresser, old carpet, and various debris. 

Detectives obtained a photo of the truck used for the dumping. It was determined to belong to Advanced Disposal, a company that is contracted by Polk County Waste and Recycling to deliver residential garbage cans. 

An employee from Advanced Disposal provided video from the truck used in the dumping, which showed Kallinicos picking up the disposed items from a residence then taking it to the two dump locations. 

The detectives made contact with the residents who disposed of the items. They said that when Kallinicos delivered the new garbage can they asked him about disposing of their refuse. He arranged to haul it away for $100, and the residents did not know it was being illegally dumped.

Peter Kallinicos was taken to the Polk County Jail with a $1,000 bond on each count. He bailed out of jail Tuesday morning.