A Florida man is accused of stealing more than 11,000 pounds of copper wiring from Dobbins Air Reserve Base and then pawning it for just over $18,000, according to Cobb County police.
Eric Tavarus McCray, of Fort Walton Beach, stole multiple spools of the wire and then sold it in Florida, his arrest warrant states. He has been charged with felony theft by taking, according to police.
“Said accused made approximately 70 transactions at the Metal Recycling company totaling over 11,564 pounds of copper and was paid $18,352.95,” McCray’s arrest warrant states.
The alleged thefts happened between March 2019 and December while he was on temporary duty orders at Dobbins in Cobb, police said Monday. McCray sold all of the copper at the same company in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, according to police.
Cobb detectives are assisting the Air Force Office of Special Investigation, according to a spokesman for Cobb police.
McCray was not yet in custody in Cobb late Monday, according to jail records. But he is facing similar charges in Florida, police said.
According to the Okaloosa Department of Corrections in Florida, McCray was arrested on Feb. 1 and charged with two counts of possession of stolen property. He was released from jail on Feb. 28 and is awaiting a hearing in that case, records showed.
The AFOSI at Hurlburt Field Air Force Base in Florida is the lead agency investigating the theft, Sgt. Wayne Delk with Cobb police said.
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