'Chicken Man' Andrew Wordes' Home Explodes When Police Arrive To Evict

Andrew Wordes, so-called Roswell Chicken Man in Georgia, appears to have blown up his house when police tried to evict him.

A Georgia man known for raising chickens appears to have blown up his home Monday afternoon after police arrived to evict him. It's the latest development in an ongoing battle over the use of the Roswell property.

Known as the "Chicken Man," Andrew Wordes raised poultry at his suburban Atlanta home even though city attorneys argued that violated ordinances banning livestock in residential areas, according to the Georgia Zoning Blog.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that Wordes, 53, fell behind on his mortgage payments while serving jail time for failing to comply with an order restricting the number of animals he kept.

Today, Fulton County Marshalls came to evict him. But a standoff ensued and around 12:45 p.m., Wordes called the cellphone of local TV reporter Mike Petchenik, who was outside the home, and told him to warn marshals to leave the property, according to the AJC. He allegedly told Petchenik, "I can't tell you" what's going to happen, "but it ain't going to be pretty."

Moments later, the home exploded, starting a fire. CBS Atlanta reported that fire officials found a deceased individual inside, but could not immediately confirm that the victim was Wordes.

Investigators found gasoline and a potential detonation device inside, according to the AJC. But officially the cause of the explosion remains under investigation, the Associated Press said.

Wordes organized the North Georgia Pet Chicken Meetup Group on the social networking site Meetup. In his profile, Wordes admits to owning more chickens than the city allowed, and implied that he sold the eggs to eager neighbors. "I love my birds with all of my heart and will always do whatever I can to protect and care for them," he wrote.

He also spoke ardently of his chickens on the page, saying, "What's not to like about owning chickens. They have great personalities, are easy to care for, they don't pee on the carpet & it's a blast to watch them with 1/2 a watermelon (chicken cocaine). Who needs Comedy Central, when you have chicken TV?"

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Comments

[El Jefe]

02:21 PM on 04/16/2012

What the article doesn't say is that he kept winning lawsuits against the city and was interfering with the United Nations' plan to take over the town's environmental laws. I'm guessing the US government blew up his house and blamed it on him.

[El Jefe]

02:26 PM on 04/16/2012

Also, what it fails to mention is that the city wanted his property for a United Nations Green Zone, so he was just a cockroach to them

[valkyre]

09:09 PM on 06/11/2012

Link to better article?

[El Jefe]

09:28 PM on 06/11/2012

http://www.naturalnews.com/035524_Andrew_Wordes_Roswell_chickens.html

[JumpStreet1983]

09:31 PM on 04/12/2012

It was only a matter of time before people who lost their homes, then their jobs, and finally their homes/apartments would take out their hostility on those whose only job is to enforce the law. After paying the rent/mortgage/taxes all their lives, they are being evicted and the government help they so desperately need is nowhere to be found.

Our police should not be involved in evictions, because it just puts them at unnecessary risk. Criminals get honored, yet decent people are ignored when it comes to tragedy. The banks/Wall Street seem unwilling to negotiate or treat people fairly. Why should our police be called in to do their dirty work?

[lowflyin lolana]

09:57 PM on 11/06/2012

Police ought to refuse. In fact in Riverside and San Bernardino County last year, deputies refused to kick out veterans who were being foreclosed upon.

They need to say "I am the people. I am not the pig."

[Daniel H Campbell]

02:20 PM on 04/12/2012

I like how they say they found a "Small detonation device" which in reality could be a Bic Lighter. I remember my friend got pulled over for speeding and the passenger threw a beer bottle out the window. This all happened on the highway and there was an airport off to the the side. The police threatened the passenger with a charge of firing a missile/projectile at an Airport

[Brett Conaway]

11:56 AM on 04/11/2012

Such a shame. He sounds like a very nice guy. I can't blame him, either; it's a lose-lose situation. Although "Man dies over chicken laws" is a more suiting title.

[aliveoneinkiwiland]

06:10 AM on 04/10/2012

The news didnt cover the fact that Andrew killed himself in his home because of the harrasment.
Natural News covers it well.
http://www.naturalnews.com/035524_Andrew_Wordes_Roswell_chickens.html

[lowflyin lolana]

09:58 PM on 11/06/2012

Thanks for posting that. The Examiner and The Perspicacious Conservative blog both did great coverage of Andrew Wordes. He was, scuse me Is awesome. I am haunted by his ghost, in a good way.

[DC4Teggy]

12:01 PM on 04/05/2012

If we all actually had property rights and Liberty, this would never have happened.

Don't worry though. A Revolution is coming.

[JumpStreet1983]

09:35 PM on 04/12/2012

We already HAVE property rights, though. He chose not to restrict the amount of animals he had, or get the permits he needed to have them within residential areas. He could have CHOSE to move to the country/rural area where the chickens wouldn't have been a problem, but he didn't. So in the end, he's responsible for his own actions. Stop making up excuses for individuals who clearly ignored the local laws and ordinances!

[DC4Teggy]

01:14 AM on 04/13/2012

Actual property rights would not have permits or restrictions.

[El Jefe]

02:22 PM on 04/16/2012

"He chose not to restrict the amount of animals he had" and the restrictions promote... freedom?

[Stephen Thorpe]

06:24 PM on 03/30/2012

This sees the end to the long fought dispute between neighbors in sleepy Roswell GA over this mans chicken coop in his back yard.
The uproar in the neighborhood that went to town hall meetings and the pressure put on the city caused them to enact an ordinance forbidding livestock including chickens and bees in their town.
He fought it and appealed, as I understand and was jailed, and jailed again and harrassed until they took to darker measures and finally went to evict him. I think they either condemned the property or put leins on it for unpaid fines.

Well Roswell is chicken free now! Congratulations!!!! Now if you want to see a chicken in Roswell it'll be at the KFC or the Walmart. Ha!

[mtheyseed]

01:36 AM on 03/30/2012

We have an urban chicken ordinance where I live. 5 hens per backyard . No roosters. It seems to be working well. From what I can gather from the story, they had an ordinance and this guy refused to comply. For whatever reason, it wasn't working and he chose to take his own life and his chickens in order to do what? Protect them? You can't blame this on the city, I'm sure had they known how unstable he was, they would have approached it differently.

[m potter]

07:24 PM on 03/31/2012

This kind of post makes me crazy... What you have said is based on pure ignorance of the facts... Andrew Wordes was perfectly within his legal rights to have his chickens and won in court twice... Then the certain city officials started harrassing him for everything they could find... frivilous code violations and even putting him in jail for 99 days causing him to lose his beloved chicken and ultimately everything ... I knew this man personally... He was a very likable, kind, gentle man who loved his animals and was hurting no one... The people of Roswell loved him... This was never about chickens this was about the city wanting his property that was targeted as a park in the 2030 development plan... His property was on the map as early as 2003 but not until this happened did that fact become aparant... So corruption was at the bottom of this and I hope that the whole truth is told... and the city officials that caused the death of this man are exposed and ousted from any government position... if not prosecuted... This is a case of the bullying a citizen by an abusive government.. If this can happen to him it can happen to you so you better know that this is a new way of property rights being violated...

[lowflyin lolana]

10:01 PM on 11/06/2012

Total, complete bloody ignorance. I love how people think they know what's up from one little article....ugh.

[mayalibre]

03:26 PM on 04/10/2012

mtheyseed -- when he had his chickens originally, there was no limiting ordinance, and he lived on one acre. The city wanted his property for "greenspace" so they decided to put the squeeze on. They passed an ordinance but refused to put in a grandfather clause which is widely and universally done so as not to alienate or infringe on existing citizens. Then his chickens were poisoned, the city bullied his mortgage holder to sell her note to someone else under threats of liens... The whole thing is a repugnant story of targeting a man who was doing no one any harm, and who in fact was well-known and well-liked within the state backyard chicken community. Check this infographic for how the story unfolded over time. http://www.naturalnews.com/Infographic-Andrew-Wordes-vs-Roswell-GA.html

[Capn Scott]

04:13 PM on 03/29/2012

So, this all happened because the guy had some chickens and the local government put him in jail because of it, causing him to fall behind in his mortgage payments which eventually led to eviction....and the explosion?

This is the exact reason why city and county code enforcement should always be a civil court matter, and not a criminal matter.

[felide]

01:20 AM on 03/28/2012

i like chickens especially roosters. . very beutiful birds..

[El Torsalo]

08:24 PM on 03/27/2012

Died for his freedom to violate zoning restrictions. And for his mortgage. Shame, really.

[m potter]

08:15 PM on 03/31/2012

Yes he died for grading his flooded out back yard that the city failed to control flood water caused from their overdevelopment and for having flooded out vehicles in his driveway... and oh yes.... he didn't stack his firewood on a palate... and when they come for you and your property I hope that people on this post will treat you with the same shallow compassion that you have given this man... And when you have been fully bankrupted and your life completely destroyed by a greedy city government that just wants your property with out paying you for it... don't feel bad when you're kicked out on the street.... Until you know what the facts of this case are don't draw false conclusions... He has been victomized enough...

[novabird]

12:22 PM on 03/27/2012

The city pecked this man to death in a manner most foul.

[IfIonlyknew]

03:21 PM on 03/27/2012

You can only push a man so far and what should they expect.

[fran glass]

11:08 AM on 03/28/2012

*giggle*

wait... wait... too soon.

*giggle*

[CassieC29]

12:10 PM on 03/27/2012

This man lived in his house LONG before the subdivisions & the snotty people that came with them moved in. It was all good until the surrounding residents decided they didnt like the chickens being IN HIS YARD!!! People are in everyone's business way too much these days. I am sure this is really going to increase your property values now! The property will sit there like it is until the new owners decide what to do with the mess thay have now! To the people who bought it on foreclosure Oct of last year....is it such a great deal now??? What a mess to clean up because of being selfish & greedy.

[bslack3000]

11:42 AM on 03/30/2012

Oddly enough Andrew could not find out who bought the house, but the City of Roswell has had it in the Plans as a park since before this all began. It will be very interesting to see if this land becomes a park.

[RJofDC]

12:03 PM on 03/27/2012

Shame on the local government - they have egg on their face!

[Electraglide]

11:00 AM on 03/27/2012

Judging from the articles published by Maggie West Bean concerning Andrew Wordes and the city of Roswell, I'd say chickens were pretty much a cover up story to keep people from examining the real issue. This man's Fifth Amendment rights had been tossed in the trash & set next to the curb for the next collection. If Mr. Wordes caused that explosion, he did those marshals a favor by warning them it was going to happen.