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Who is Basil Eleby, suspected bridge burner?

Basil Eleby (Fulton County Sheriff's Office)
Basil Eleby (Fulton County Sheriff's Office)
By Craig Schneider, and
April 10, 2017

Many communities have a Basil Eleby. He's the aimless guy who has nobody, no place to go, and no way to support himself.

Store owners around the intersection of Piedmont Road and Lakeshore Drive in Atlanta took Eleby under wing, giving him errands and chores.

Now Eleby is accused of starting the fire that collapsed a large section of I-85, and consequently creating a two-month traffic nightmare for Atlantans.

Who is this man, thrust from anonymous homelessness to national headlines?

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution spoke to store owners, people who know Eleby, and even his mother, Annette.

Read more: Atlanta bridge collapse: Who is to blame?

About the Authors

Craig Schneider

David Wickert writes about the state budget, finance and voting issues. Previously, he covered local government and politics in Gwinnett and Fulton counties. Before moving to Atlanta, he worked at newspapers in Illinois, Tennessee, Virginia and Washington.

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Dan Klepal is editor of the local government team, supervising nine reporters covering county and municipal governments and metro Atlanta. Klepal came to the AJC in 2012, after a long career covering city halls in Cincinnati and Louisville, Ky. He has covered Gwinnett and Cobb counties before spending three years on the investigative team.

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