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Man charged with phone line theft
CARRIERE, Feb 14, 2012 (Picayune Item - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) --
A Carriere man is facing charges in multiple jurisdictions for allegedly stealing telephone lines from south Mississippi, Louisiana and possibly Alabama. Charged is 38-year-old Richard Anthony Hemphill of 19 Lorna Lane, Carriere, said Pearl River County Sheriff's Department Chief Investigator Donnie Saucier. Investigators with the Pearl River County Sheriff's Department were contacted by the Slidell Police Department on Thursday about their case concerning the theft of phone lines from AT and T service areas in the Slidell, La., area, Saucier said. A search warrant was secured for Hemphill's home by using information from the Slidell Police Department. Saucier said during the search, investigators with both departments found evidence of what appeared to be thousands of phone lines and cable stolen from wire lines and substations. The evidence included phone cable plastic housing. The case could expand to include cable thefts from a number of jurisdictions, including Pearl River County; Pearl River, Slidell and St. Tammany Parish, La.; Hancock County, Harrison County and possibly areas in the state of Alabama, Saucier said. Copper stripped from the lines was sold to a number of scrap yards in different areas. The plastic housing found during the search contains identification information that the phone company can use to determine where the line was stolen from, Saucier said. Continued investigation will involve working with the phone company to determine where the lines were taken from, Saucier said. The Sheriff's Department received information over the past year about phone lines being removed from three substations in Pearl River County, the chief investigator said. The arrest of additional suspects is expected as investigators look into the possibility of accomplices being involved, Saucier said.
Copyright 2012 The Picayune Item. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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