On the morning of Wednesday, April 30th, supervisory park ranger Patrick Shell came upon a white Dodge pickup parked on the west side of the parkway with its hazard lights on. The truck was also hauling several new, large appliances, and this type of hauling is prohibited on the parkway. As Shell stopped to investigate, the chief of a local police department arrived on scene along with the driver, identified as John Avery, 37, of Shubuta, Mississippi. The chief told Shell that he’d contacted Avery as he was walking to a nearby town and that Avery told him he’d run out of gas. They’d returned to his truck with a container of fuel. Shell asked Avery about the appliances, which were still in their original shipping containers. Shell noted that Avery was very nervous, and determined that he could possibly be under the influence of drugs. Avery and his passenger provided conflicting information about their trip and the appliances. Further investigation revealed that they’d been stolen that morning from a new housing development nearby. Avery and his companion were arrested on numerous charges.
