Sheriff Major Hulon of Dillon County and Sheriff Fred Knight of Marlboro County jointly announced October 13th at a news conference that there will be a special emphasis on solving and prosecuting cases involving copper theft.
The news announcement by the two county Sheriffs was made at the Beauty Spot Substation, owned by Marlboro Electric Cooperative, Inc., one of many utilities victimized by the vandalism of substations and copper theft.
“Marlboro Electric has an infrastructure in place and it is our job to provide reliable power to our members, which is being jeopardized by copper theft,” Marlboro Electric’s President & CEO Bill Fleming said. “We are tired of being a victim of copper theft and we have decided to take leadership in resolving this problem for our members and for our community.”
Fleming added that not only does this crime affect the co-op and its members having to pay for replacement costs with copper theft, but the lives and safety of employees, members, and the community is in danger.
Marlboro Electric’s Board of Trustees has been so concerned about losses caused by copper thieves that they recently voted to work with the Sheriffs more closely to provide substantial reward money for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for copper theft.
“Every citizen in our community has a stake in this problem and we are all affected,” said Marlboro Electric’s Board Chairman Melvin Carabo.
“We hope that today’s announcement will cause people to take this crime more seriously and will help us put a real dent in the huge problem of copper theft.” Carabo pointed out what an expensive problem this has become for Marlboro Electric and its members.
In announcing the enhanced reward money, Sheriff Fred Knight said “I am pleased and proud to stand here today with my fellow Sheriff Major Hulon of Dillon County to announce that Marlboro Electric Cooperative’s Board of Trustees has stepped up to the plate to assist local law enforcement to DECLARE WAR ON COPPER THEFT”.
Sheriff Knight emphasized that they can only solve this very important public crime problem in our counties if ordinary citizens help by “keeping their eyes and ears open” and pass on to law enforcement any information they obtain. He also indicated that they are prepared to pay out a substantial reward to anyone who provides information which leads directly to solving any copper theft case in which Marlboro Electric Cooperative is the victim.
Dillon County Sheriff Major Hulon added that since both Dillon and Marlboro Counties sit on the border of the NC/SC state line, copper stolen down here is being sold or disposed of in North Carolina, giving rise to the possibility of prosecuting these cases in Federal court.
Hulon stated, “We need to send a loud and clear message to copper thieves and people buying stolen copper that you WILL GO TO JAIL!”
Anyone with information relating to theft, distribution and/or selling of any copper from Marlboro Electric Cooperative, or any other victim, is encouraged to report that information to Sheriff Fred Knight at 843-479-5605 or Sheriff Major Hulon at 843-774-1432.