Jul 3, 2013 2 min read

WAYNESBURG – Waynesburg Borough police are asking residents to check the electrical ground wires on their homes following recent reports of the theft of copper wire.

Waynesburg Police Lt. Dale Phillips said Wednesday that a borough employee recently brought it to his attention that the ground wire had been removed from outside his house.

The employee said he knew of several others who had the same problem, Phillips said.

The ground wire normally runs from the electrical meter or the electrical panel inside the house to a rod in the ground outside the house. The removal of the wire could pose a safety hazard, Phillips said.

Phillips said he urged residents to check the wire and make sure it is intact. If the wire has been removed, the resident should contact an electrician.

The borough has had a spate of copper wire thefts recently and arrested two men last week in connection with the theft of wire from utility poles.

Jason Leroy Fuller, 25, of Holbrook, and Thomas C. Burroughs, 42, of Waynesburg, were arrested June 23 after a patrolman noticed wire and a pair of bolt cutters protruding from Fuller’s backpack.

The two are accused of cutting wire from at least 10 utility poles in the borough.

The wire in their possession weighed about 16 pounds.

Police do not know whether the men had anything to do with the theft of the copper ground wires from houses, Phillips said. “They are not the only ones (allegedly) out there stealing copper,” he said.