Dear Neighbors,
On Monday evening, February 17th between 7:00 and 7:45 pm it was reported to the Paulding County Sheriff's office that 2 men (ages 18-20+) had been soliciting business from homes in Highcrest and sections P & Q off Graves Road and Brisbane Drive. It was reported that around 7:00 pm these 2 men walked into the front door of a resident's home where the owner confronted them after hearing his dog barking. They took off and that is when the 911 call was made.
Several residents reported being suspicious of 2 young, men who were soliciting business under the premise of fund raising for a sports program and other charities. They were seen being dropped off from and picked up in a white van. These men were described as white males ages 18-20+. They were wearing green windbreaker jackets and carried clipboards asking those who answered their doors for their names, addresses and phone numbers.
I received an update this afternoon, it was discovered that these men were hired by a company called The Weed Man with an office in Roswell, GA. The manager at that location verified that he had sent a group out to solicit business in this area. They hire teens and college age men to solicit for them under the premise of fund raising and then follow-up is done by a salesperson from Weed Man to try to get lawn service contracts with those residents who offered their personal information. These young men are paid based on how many names, addresses and contact information they turn in each day.
The manager was reminded that this is a No Solicitation neighborhood and was told to stay away. The fact that the 2 young men who walked into a resident's home and were confronted by the husband holding a gun should be enough to keep him and his crew out of our neighborhood.
Please make sure that your doors are locked. More importantly, do not answer your door unless you know who is knocking or you are expecting guests or an appointment with someone. The only way to stop solicitation in the community is for each resident that is bothered by these solicitors to call the company behind it and complain. The streets throughout Bentwater are public streets. If you are bothered by someone soliciting, ask them to leave your property. If they refuse, call the police who can then arrest the person for trespassing if they are still on your property when the police arrive.
Thank you,
XXXXX XXXXXXX, Community Manager
