#New Jersey man who built illegal, 7-story mountain of trash to be jailed after coronavirus

A New Jersey man can remain king of his seven-story hill of trash for now —  thanks to the coronavirus.

A man who has built an illegal dump on his Sussex County property won’t be thrown in jail for the eyesore until after the coronavirus pandemic subsides, according to a Superior Court judge’s ruling.

Joseph Wallace, of Vernon, has repeatedly lied to state investigators and the court-appointed receiver who currently controls his assets about the operations and contents in his massive trash heap, Judge Maritza Berdote Byrne wrote in her decision.

Wallace lied to investigators about where all the material on his mound had originated, she found.

He also falsely claimed he didn’t have any bank accounts and lied when he said his two Cadillacs were actually were paid for by his daughters, she found.

He also failed to list on his assets his fleet of motorcycles, dirt bikes and four-wheelers, Byrne Found.

It’s not immediately clear when Wallace will be incarcerated.

The order states that he’ll be jailed only once the “incarceration restrictions caused by COVID-19” are lifted.

Wallace still has until July 15 to fully comply with the order from November that appointed his receiver.

“As I’ve said from day one, I will hold accountable any individuals who violate New Jersey’s environmental laws and think they can get away with it, especially when they disregard the health of their neighbors and communities,” Attorney General Gurbir Grewal said in a statement to NJ.com.

“The lesson from today’s order is simple—when we prevail in court, and the court grants us relief, there will be consequences for failing to comply.”

Wallace has waged a long battle with the state’s Department of Environmental Protection and has angered neighbors who complain that the dump is still operational even after Wallace had been found to be illegally operating the site, according to the outlet.

Initial attempts to reach Wallace Friday night were not successful

The mayor of Vernon was delighted to hear of the order.

“I’m really glad to see that that has happened,” Burrell told the outlet.

“Not because I hold any malice towards Mr. Wallace, but it appears that he’s not a very repentant person and he doesn’t understand the degree of the physical and image harm that he’s done to our town.”