Deadly hidden traps found at park near future Atlanta police training center targeted by Antifa

On Friday, county CEO Michael Thurmond issued an executive order restricting public access to the park as well as other adjacent county-owned properties following the discovery of "hidden traps or other devices designed to injure, maim, or cause the death of adults, children, and pets," according to a press release. Photos of the traps showed wooden boards with nails hammered into them.

Thurmond told CNN that authorities "confiscated booby traps, boards with nails that were hidden by leaves and underbrush. You could kill a small child or a pet with those."

Thurmond said he "understands the pushback against Cop City," a term used by far-left extremists occupying the training facility site and attacking authorities who attempt to remove them, "but this is too far," he added.

Per the executive order, "unauthorized persons entering the properties will be subject to prosecution for criminal trespass and any other violation of law to the fullest extent of Georgia Law."

Any unauthorized vehicles in the park will be towed and impounded, and entrances to the area will be secured with cement barricades.

In a Friday press conference announcing the executive order, Thurmond said, "law enforcement officers have found hidden traps and other devices designed to injure, maim, or cause death to adults, children, and pets who may go into that area."

Thurmond said that parks and recreation employees have been unable to safely inspect the park, and "we don’t know for certain if there might be other dangerous contraptions and traps hidden."

"I am warning all DeKalb residents and others who come to our county to avoid this location," Thurmond said, later adding, "Someone walking on a trail and trips, a blow to the head is deadly. It becomes not just a hidden trap, it becomes a death trap."

Thurmond added that if people are encountered in the park that were unaware of the closure, they will be asked to leave immediately.

Those caught "moving, removing, or defacing signs posted by this county on the properties will be subject to prosecution."

Additional traps were found after the DeKalb County Police Department went in to clear the park area, including Molotov cocktails as well as more nailed boards.

As part of the training facility construction, the City of Atlanta has pledged to preserve more than 300 acres of forest for green spaces, according to the Atlanta Training Center website.

Dozens of arrests have occurred in the area in recent months, many of which have been charged with domestic terrorism for their attacks on officers, using projectiles like rocks, fireworks, and Molotov cocktails.

Earlier this month, far-left extremists marched to the construction site, setting construction equipment on fire and throwing rocks and fireworks at officers. 23 people were charged with domestic terrorism in connection to the attack.

In January, one of the occupying protestors shot at an officer, leading officers to fire back. The suspect, Manuel Esteban Paez Teran, was killed. The officer was rushed to a local hospital, and survived his injuries. Antifa protested Teran's death in later that month.

After an additional attempt to take over the area, many more activists were arrested, including an attorney with the Southern Poverty Law Center, who was arrested on domestic terrorism charges.