Former Sanger mayor heads to Ukraine in combat gear. His landscaping company is being sued

The former mayor of Sanger has vowed to join the fight on the side of Ukraine and is reportedly en route to the battlefront, his attorney confirmed Thursday.

A photo of Joshua Mitchell, the former mayor, appeared on Twitter Thursday in combat gear. The photo was shared by Paul Waldie, European correspondent for the Globe and Mail of Toronto.

Mitchell’s attorney, Jeremy M. Dobbins, said Mitchell had informed him of his intent to head for the battlefield.

“He didn’t say much to me,” said Dobbins. “He just feels people need to step up (and help the Ukrainians), and he wanted to go.

“We didn’t have a lot of conversation about it.”

Restaurateur suing in dispute over landscaping work

Mitchell served as mayor of Sanger from 2012 to 2015. He resigned after paying a fine for election law violations. He was recently sued by restaurateur Vatche Moukhtarian in a dispute over landscaping work at Moukhtarian’s northwest Fresno home.

In the lawsuit, Moukhtarian said Mitchell’s landscaping company, JDM Landscape, botched work on his yard that resulted in broken plumbing, collapsed concrete and caused an estimated $200,000 in damages.

In addition, Moukhtarian said Mitchell sent a bogus building inspector to the work site to sign off on the construction.

Speaking for Mitchell, Dobbins denied the accusations and said he looked forward to contesting the allegations in court.

This story was originally published March 24, 2022 at 12:36 PM.