The man who became infamous after poisoning Auburn’s beloved Toomer’s Oaks in 2010 has died.
Ten years ago, a retired Texas State Trooper named Harvey Updyke became enraged after Cam Newton and the Auburn Tigers came back from a 24-0 deficit to defeat the Alabama Crimson Tide. Updyke, a rabid fan of the Tide, drove 30 miles from Dadeville to poison Auburn’s oaks.
And then he confessed to the crime by calling in to the Paul Finebaum show.
“Let me tell you what I did, the weekend after the Iron Bowl, I went to Auburn because I lived 30 miles away, and I poisoned the two Toomer’s trees. I put Spike 80DF in ‘em. They’re not dead yet, but they definitely will die.”
The oaks indeed had been poisoned and were eventually removed and replaced in 2013. They have since been replaced again after they were set on fire in 2016. According to Jerry Hinnen of CBS Sports, in 2013 Updyke, “pleaded guilty to a charge of criminal damage of an agricultural facility, a Class-C felony in Alabama.”
He served 6 months in jail and 5 years in prison. The court also ordered him to pay $800,000 in restitution, but according to court records has only paid about $7,000.
At the time of his death Updyke was living in Louisiana. His son said the cause of death is attributed to natural causes.