Three charges with stealing copper
By News-Argus Staff
Published in News on October 1, 2008 1:53 PM
KENANSVILLE -- Surveillance by Duplin County Sheriff's deputies at a warehouse recently resulted in two men and a woman being "caught red-handed in the act of stealing copper wiring" from the facility, according to Duplin County Sheriff Blake Wallace.
Wallace also said Tuesday that deputies, in an unrelated incident, seized a large cache of guns and drug paraphernalia and arrested two men on multiple drug charges at a rural Mount Olive residence.
The trio caught in the act of allegedly stealing copper wiring were Donald Wayne Grady, 41, Quail Lane, Deep Run; Lea Ann Oglesby, 26, Bland Howell Road, Kinston; and Floyd Lee Thompson Jr., 40, North NC Hwy. 903, Albertson.
Each suspect was booked for breaking and entering and possession of burglary tools. They were placed under $5,000 bonds each at the Duplin County Jail in Kenansville.
Wallace said that after his office received information about a possible break-in at the warehouse, "a large number" of deputies set up surveillance at the building prior to apprehending the suspects.
Deputies seized "a significant amount" of copper wiring, "enough that just two men couldn't remove it from a truck," along with burglary tools, Wallace said.
Wallace said the suspects had some elaborate homemade tools and devices designed to pull wiring from ceilings and walls of the large warehouse, which was not being used.
He did not disclose the exact location of the warehouse since an investigation is still ongoing but noted that some $80,000 in damages were done to the building.
Booked in the drug incident near Mount Olive were Stuart Bernice Rivenbark, Trade Road, Mount Olive, and Adam Wade Jones, 43, Sandy Ridge Lane, Albertson.
Rivenbark and Jones each were charged with possession of marijuana with intent to sell and deliver; manufacture of marijuana; possession of methamphetamine, commonly called meth; manufacture of methamphetamine; felony possession of marijuana; possession of drug paraphernalia; and maintaining a residence -- the Rivenbarks' Tram Road home -- for keeping and selling methamphetamine and marijuana.
They were placed under $250,000 bonds each.
Wallace said the arrests were made at the Rivenbark residence following an investigation. He said two marijuana plants were growing outside and deputies found a "small amount" of meth along with meth precursors at the residence.
Also seized were four shotguns and five rifles.
Jones was wanted on an outstanding warrant on unrelated charges by Lenoir County and was turned over to the sheriff there, but would be brought back to Duplin County, Wallace said.
In a second unrelated drug arrest the sheriff's Duplin Interstate Criminal Enforcement (DICE) team arrested Consepcion Villegas Flores, 29, Tommy Davis Dr., Evergreen, for multiple meth and cocaine charges after a traffic stop near Wallace.
DICE Lt. Chris Smith and other team members searched a van Flores was driving and found six ounces of meth, three ounces of powder cocaine and three ounces of crack cocaine.