A man who scattered nails on roads in three different towns has been indicted on multiple charges, Hamilton County Prosecutor Melissa Powers announced Wednesday.
Springdale police said Anthony Dyson, 44, was linked to scattered nails found in Springdale, Sharonville and West Chester on March 24.
Dyson was previously arrested by West Chester police in 2023, accused of throwing nails out of a moving car. That case is still pending in Butler County Municipal Courts. There is also a warrant for his arrest in Butler County, which was filed on March 26.
Powers indicted Dyson on three counts of vandalism, a fifth degree felony, and one count of criminal damaging, a second degree misdemeanor. If convicted on all charges, Dyson faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison alongside forfeiting his vehicle.
Powers said police in Springdale, Sharonville and West Chester began receiving numerous complaints about tire damage caused by nails in the roadway. Officials found that majority of these nails were 5/8-inch concrete tack strip nails, which are normally used in the flooring business.
Powers said officers found Dyson as a suspect because he worked in the flooring business and had purchased an excessive amount of those exact nails.
According to court documents, police determined that between December 2023 and March 2024, Dyson bought 350 pounds of nails from a store in Evendale.
In March, Springdale police marked nails from the store Dyson frequented with a liquid that could only be seen under ultraviolet light. Nails with the ultraviolet markings were then discovered in all three areas, Powers said. More marked nails were then found in Dyson's vehicle, she said.
"I want to thank the Springdale Police Department for their outstanding and creative investigation that resulted in this arrest," Powers said. "This was a senseless and cruel act repeated over a course of years. During that time, this defendant put thousands of motorists at risk and ruined untold numbers of tires."
Powers said Dyson deserves "every consequence the justice system can offer."
"When I think of the people hurt most by this — people who might not be able to miss a shift at work due to a flat tire or who do not have the extra money to spend on an unexpected car repair — it makes me furious," Powers said.
READ MORE:
Police: Man bought 350 pounds of nails, scattered them on road through three towns
West Chester man accused of throwing nails in the road in court, charged with vandalism
'Extremely inconvenient': Springdale residents deal with thousands in repairs due to nails in tires
