A 57-year-old Homestead woman was taken into custody over the weekend after authorities found thousands of pounds of trash abandoned at an illegal campsite in the Upper Keys.
Carol Marie Swain was arrested on Aug. 22, 2026, and faces charges of illegal dumping. Her arrest follows the Aug. 20 booking of co-defendant Stephen James Dean, 42, of Key Largo.
According to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, the pair had set up an unauthorized makeshift structure on county-owned land near Mile Marker 98. Deputies initially issued a warning giving Swain and Dean seven days to vacate the property and clear away their belongings and debris.
Deputies conducted multiple follow-up visits to inspect the location, but the site remained occupied and littered.
Arrest warrants were subsequently issued for both individuals after they failed to comply with the order to clean the parcel.
Crews from the Sheriff’s Office and local community partners ultimately cleared the campsite, removing a total of 3,500 pounds of garbage and discarded materials from the public land.
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