Man hired contractor to illegally dig up median in front of home, deputies say

UNION COUNTY, N.C. — An Indian Trail man was arrested and faces charges after police said he tried to dig up and remove a portion of landscaping median in front of his home.

Detectives arrested 32-year-old Ryan Smith, who lives in the Brandon Oaks neighborhood, charging him with two counts of injury to real property and one count of felony conversion.

Last week, The Town of Indian Trail alerted deputies about the unauthorized removal of the median on Braxton Drive.

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When deputies showed up at the scene they found an excavator sitting in the middle of the road where a portion of the median once stood.

Detectives determined that Smith had sought permission from the Town of Indian Trail to have a portion of the median removed but the request was denied.

Smith, who is an engineer with the city of Monroe's water department, was involved with the road construction project taking place on East Franklin Street, according to authorities, and allegedly hired Classic City Mechanical to perform work on that project for the city of Monroe.

According to investigators, Smith spoke with a superintendent with Classic City about hiring them to remove the median in front of his home, but the superintendent refused. Smith then allegedly spoke with another employee, a foreman, about doing the job and the foreman agreed.

Smith allegedly paid the foreman from his own funds to remove an excavator from the Monroe job site, on company time, and take it to his neighborhood to remove the median.

Detectives said the intent was to use asphalt left over from the Monroe project to pave the area where the median was removed. Deputies disrupted the plan before the unauthorized project was finished.

Smith posted bail and is out of jail awaiting his first court appearance.

Monroe officials said Smith has been placed on administrative leave. He was hired by the city in April 2016 as a water systems engineer.

Cox Media Group