Copper thief to serve prison sentence after accepting deal

A Highland Springs man will serve two and a half years in prison after accepting a plea agreement in Charles City Circuit Court on July 19.

William McKendrie Jeffries Jr., 40, of 18 N. Ivy Road, accepted the deal and pled guilty to one count each of possession of burglary tools, damage to a public utility, and misdemeanor petty larceny. One count of misdemeanor vandalism was dropped.

Jeffries admitted he and a former co-defendant, Dee Marie Loving, were at a Dominion Virginia Power substation on Oct. 12 of last year. There, he used burglary tools to strip copper wire from various areas on the property.

According to Commonwealth’s Attorney Rob Tyler, the company contacted Charles City Sheriff’s office after remote surveillance spotted a van on the property. When deputies arrived, the vehicle was pulling out of the substation and was stopped subsequently. When inspected by officers, stolen material was discovered in the cab of the van. Tyler continued to explain that surveillance video revealed Jeffries cutting the wire that resulted in an explosion and that Jeffries probably committed the crime to feed a drug addiction.

Under the agreement, Jeffries was sentenced to 10 years in prison with seven years, six months suspended on the damage of a public utility. Five years of possession of burglary tools and one year on misdemeanor petty larceny were suspended. He also must pay $554.38 in restitution for damages to the substation.