The 39-year-old homeless man accused of setting the fire that brought down a chunk of Interstate 85 was released on bond from the Fulton County jail Wednesday.
Basil Eleby walked out of the lock up and into the care of a substance abuse counselor more than 26 hours after Fulton Superior Court Judge Ural Glanville agreed to terms of his release.
Glanville signed off Tuesday morning on a proposed $10,000 signature bond, meaning Eleby didn’t have to put up any money.
Under the terms of his release, Eleby must get residential drug and mental health treatment, he cannot contact witnesses directly or indirectly and he is allowed within 1,000 feet of the area where an elevated portion of I-85 collapsed on March 30 only when accompanied by his lawyers or their investigators. He must get a job within 60 days. Prosecutors and Eleby's lawyers agreed to the terms of his release.
Eleby’s release was delayed because the court paperwork laying out his bond did not reach the jail until Tuesday night.
Eleby is charged with arson and criminal damage to property for allegedly starting the fire. The indictment says Eleby was under the highway using drugs and he set fire to a stuff chair that was on top of a shopping cart. Investigators say the shopping cart melted and the fire spread to plastic conduit the Georgia Department of Transportation had been storing there for years.
The fire was so hot that a section of I-85 collapsed, closing that important roadway to cars and trucks at least until June 15, when GDOT has said it will have the repairs completed.
Eleby has pleaded not guilty to the felony charges. His lawyers said after court Tuesday that he is innocent and some of the blame for the devastating fire lies with the state for not securing the flammable materials that had apparently been forgotten.
His next court appearance is set for June 16.
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