A 22-year-old driver, Deandre Rayshaun Charleston, has been charged with cargo theft after dumping FedEx packages worth $40,000 in a ravine. A resident of Adamsville in Blount County, Charleston dumped the FedEx packages in the ravine in November, claiming he was suffering from the grief of a family member.
Sheriff Mark Moon said Charleston was charged with a Class D felony and that five warrants were issued for him to be charged for five counts of cargo theft. He said the offender cooperated with investigators and that he was respectful during interviews. He said he hoped that facing the music for his action will teach him some important “life lessons”.
Charleston discharged between 300-400 packages into the ravine close to Hayden along River Oak Trail. Authorities said many of the packages were recovered on November 24 and they included pet items, children’s toys, food, Beanie Babies, and other collectibles.
About 247 of the dumped items were valued at $25,000 and could not be scanned by FedEx to determine their real owners. But the owners of another $15,000 worth of items were able to be identified, and they were people living in Blount County and beyond.
Sheriff Moon said it was apparent that Charleston made terrible choices because of his grief and other personal problems, but that would not excuse him from getting appropriate punishment for his offenses.
“It appeared that he was very sorrowful for what he’d done and just admitted he was having some hard times in his life and just made poor choices,” Moon said. “I hope this is one of those things that change his life forever in a way that improves his life.”