Dallas / Fort Worth Local News

DALLAS (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ― Last March, City of Dallas crews made a surprising discovery. They found hundreds of cans of paint, many of them rusted, some possibly 30 years old and others leaking through dumpsters and onto Pilgrim Street in Pleasant Grove.

After discovering the paint crews called the Dallas Marshals – who investigate illegal dumping. Investigators say between 700 and 1,000 cans of paint were found. "We've never seen that quantity of paint dumped before," said Sgt. Paul Hansen of the Dallas Marshal's Office.

Some of the labels on the cans warned of hazardous waste dangers, such as flammability. Hansen said some of the paint even tested positive for lead. "The fact that it was lead based; the fact that it was flammable; it could have caused an environmental problem and safety concern."

So where did all of the paint cans come from? The paint is from one of the area's most popular attractions: Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington.

According to marshals, Six Flags representatives came and acknowledged the cans were originally theirs. Investigator David Hobbs says everything began back in 2006. "According to a witness from Six Flags, they had lead discharges in their sewer system and had to flush their sewer system and had to flush their lines. And after that, they suspected the lead was coming from the paint."

So marshals say, Six Flags then decided to get rid of its old paint. "According to a witness statement, they had sought to hire a remediation company and apparently the cost was too high," said Sgt. Hansen.

Hansen says Six Flags' paint supplier, ICI Paints, arranged a donation and delivered the paint. According to marshals, Oak Cliff Pastor Robert Murillo received Six Flags' donated paint and was later arrested for illegal dumping. "This paint was donated to our ministry from the people at Six Flags," Murillo said. "I didn't ever touch it. That had nothing to do with me."

Professor Andrew Hunt of the University of Texas at Arlington, whose studying how to reduce lead in soil in New Orleans, says the federal government outlawed lead paint back in 1978 for good reason. Hunt called the paint a "major potential hazard" and said, "Federal agencies, like HUD (Housing and Urban Development) have been trying to get rid of lead based paint."

One day, the marshals say Murillo moved out of a house he was renting in Oak Cliff and left the paint there without disposing of it. "We consider that illegal dumping because of the weight of the debris," explained Sgt. Hansen.

When CBS 11 News asked Murillo what he thought when he saw all of the paint being donated he said, "I said wow. I didn't know it was illegal or anything."

The law requires the proper disposal of hazardous waste, such as lead based paint. It's also illegal to transport it to an unpermitted place, like the house where Murillo was living. Ken Justiss, Murillo's landlord, had to clean it up. He says when he first saw all the cans he wondered, "How in the world do you dispose of this."

Justiss says he hired a contractor and unbeknownst to him, says the waste ended up in dumpsters.

Crews, dressed in hazardous materials gear, had to get rid of the problem and Justiss was stuck paying the bill; about $45,000. "It was an awfully big hit from out of the blue," he said. "One is inclined to ask -- from where did these things originate and how come it fell in my lap?"

For its part Six Flags, where the paint cans originated, issued a statement saying the donation "was done in good faith and we were unaware of any problem or issues."

Six Flags spokeswoman Sharon Parker says back in 2006, when the paint was donated, they tested it and realized it was old. At the time, she says they were not using lead paint and aren't now.

Six Flags says it was in the process of hiring a company to dispose of the paint when its paint supplier found Pastor Murillo to donate it to instead. Professor Hunt said, "If you're a large operation, you should know how to dispose of lead contaminated waste."

Six Flags' paint supplier, ICI Paints says it's "involvement with this situation was simply to facilitate a donation of paint from Six Flags to a Dallas-area pastor. Because the paint was never owned by nor produced by ICI Paints, we cannot comment on its contents or quality."

So will ICI and Six Flags face charges for not properly disposing of the paint? Marshals say their investigation is ongoing.

(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)