ROSWELL, GA (CBS ATLANTA) -
Friends stopped by the home of Andrew Wordes, best known as the "Chicken Man," to pay their respects on Tuesday, one day after Wordes blew up his home as marshals tried to evict him.
"He was a lonely man. He had nowhere," said neighbor Beverly Paris. "It was sad. He thought that was his only option. It was very sad."
The Fulton County Medical Examiner confirmed the body found inside the home was that of Wordes.
Fulton County Marshals arrived at the home Monday morning to remove Wordes from his home because the home had gone into foreclosure.
"I'm completely shocked and certainly saddened, " said Ryan Strickland, who Wordes had recently hired to fight his eviction. "This is a tragedy for any number of reasons, not the least of which the fight for his home had just begun."
Strickland filed a petition to stop the eviction on Monday and asked for an emergency hearing.
"Because he came to me literally days before the eviction, there was nothing we could do," Strickland told CBS Atlanta News.
Wordes became known as the "Chicken Man" because he fought and won the right to raise chickens on his property. He also locked horns with the City of Roswell on code and zoning ordinances.
"He was eccentric. He was misunderstood," said friend Patti Silva. "But ultimately, he felt like he wasn't heard by the people that needed to hear him."
Copyright 2012 WGCL-TV (Meredith Corporation). All rights reserved.
