Four Topeka men were arrested Monday after a morning theft at a Lecompton business.
According to a news release from the Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office, about 1,000 feet of copper wiring was cut from machinery at Mid-States Materials LLC at 2 N. 1700 Road. An employee from Advantage Metals in Topeka notified police when four men tried to sell the copper to the business.
Police investigated and arrested John D. Smith, 31; Frankie Lee Graham, 31; Tyler Andrew Bodenhamer, 19; and Shawn Michael William, 19.
All four were booked into the Shawnee County Jail on Monday afternoon.
Damages to Mid-States — with locations in both Douglas and Shawnee counties — is estimated at $30,000.
Comments
MacHeath 8 months, 2 weeks ago
Good for MId-States materials! if more places acted as responsibly , copper theft would be a thing of the past.
Bigdog66046 8 months, 2 weeks ago
i think you meant to thank the employee at Advantage Metals. They are the ones that called the police Midstates was the victim.
The_Big_B 8 months, 2 weeks ago
Hang 'em. Creeps!
kansasplains1 8 months, 2 weeks ago
I also wish to thank the employee(s) at Advantage Metals.
People are stealing copper from houses throughout the country.
It's a shame several of the people are so young, but they should have known better!
Topple 8 months, 1 week ago
My friend in Topeka had her very large (3+ feet tall) copper plant pots stolen from her front patio. These people are lousy scum. They'll just end up with probation and be back on the streets doing it to less suspecting people in no time.
classclown 8 months, 2 weeks ago
Lawrence now has plenty of it's own thugs/punks to handle our crime needs that the Topeka thugs are having to reach out to other communities.
LarryNative 8 months, 1 week ago
Thank you Advantage Metals! I am sick of these idiots who destroy a $5000 a/c unit for $25 of copper.
touringdriver 8 months, 1 week ago
So is Topeka out of Copper now or what?
1southernjayhawk 8 months, 1 week ago
I agree with you, LarryNative. I hate these low-life theives.
1southernjayhawk 8 months, 1 week ago
thieves, sorry.
overthemoon 8 months, 1 week ago
I'd love to put copper gutters on my house...might as well paint 'steal me' signs on them.
Agnostick 8 months, 1 week ago
If they want copper that bad, I say let 'em have it!! Boiled up in a nice warm soup or stew, for example. Maybe something that can be injected?
tbaker 8 months, 1 week ago
Did you know you cannot sell copper wire to a scrap metal business?
After a big remodel last year, my sons collected all the scrap wire we had left over, burned off the insulation in the wood stove and bundled it up for sale to the scrap metal guy. No can do. He said state law wouldn't let him take it.
So either the thieves didn't know about this law, or there are still scrap metal guys who will break the law and buy it. You'd think they would have got one of those buyers lined up before they went to all the trouble to steal it. Morons...
classclown 8 months, 1 week ago
How long until we read a story in the paper about the dome over the capital building missing?
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