A 65-year-old Arizona man has been taken into custody after federal authorities say they found he had been living for years inside a national forest northeast of Phoenix.
Mark Aaron Gatz is accused of maintaining what officials described as a permanent camp in Tonto National Forest for roughly eight years, an allegation that could carry a prison sentence of up to five years.
Gatz was arrested on June 25, and investigators said they discovered nearly half a ton of trash scattered across and around the campsite, according to federal court documents reviewed by The Independent.
In one citation issued before Gatz was arrested, an officer wrote that he was “flabbergasted by the amount of debris in the area.”
The same officer reportedly characterized the situation as “possibly one of the worst residential cases he has seen.”
The camp was situated near a dirt trail used by hikers, mountain bikers and off-road vehicles, placing the alleged illegal settlement close to a popular recreation area.
Before the arrest, the National Park Service had received repeated complaints about “several large structures, several man-made fire pits, several years’ worth of trash, household goods scattered throughout the forest of roughly an acre.”
A citation filed June 29 in Arizona federal court said that “roughly half of [an] acre of resources [was] ruined” because of the illegal structures and garbage that had remained on the forest floor for an extended period.
Mark Aaron Gatz, 65, was arrested on June 25 for allegedly living in Tonto National Forest in Arizona for about eight years
Gatz allegedly ruined about half an acre of resources in the national park by leaving half a ton of trash around his campsite. Blossoms and cacti are pictured in Tonto National Forest
‘The trash consisted of tires, plastic bags, trash bags, aluminum cans and other items of trash,’ the citation said.
Gatz had also reportedly built a canopy under which he parked an SUV. Other items at his campsite included a cooking station with around a dozen frying pans, five 55-gallon drums, eight tires, four bike frames, five gallons of motor oil and lumber.
National Forest police knew of Gatz for about a year, and he had at least six outstanding federal arrest warrants before he was taken into custody.
Those warrants were for building a campfire during fire restrictions, building on forest land, unsanitary conditions and occupying a national forest as a residence, according to the citation.
Gatz was detained as a potential flight risk and is accused of violating a total of nine federal laws.
Those laws include building and maintaining a fire outside a designated area, leaving a fire without extinguishing it, camping for longer than is allowed, constructing and occupying a residence on National Forest land, damaging a natural feature belonging to the US, and littering, among others.
Gatz is accused of violating nine federal laws, including littering in the National Forest. Workers are pictured cleaning up trash in a different National Forest in California
According to a June 30 detention order, Gatz has a criminal history and failed to appear in court multiple times for violating residency and fire restrictions that he had received warnings and citations for.
Arrests for living on National Forest land are fairly unusual and typically only occur if the suspect has a history on non-compliance. Repercussions usually amount to large fines and a ban from the area rather than prison time.
Campers in National Forests are generally limited to a 14-day stay within 30 days. Staying beyond that period, building structures and leaving behind personal property is considered unauthorized residential use.
