RALEIGH COUNTY, WV (LOOTPRESS) – Authorities have identified and questioned two individuals in connection with a copper wire theft that disrupted telecommunications services for multiple residents in Arnett, WV.
On February 26, 2025, law enforcement spoke with Bryan Helmer, a Frontier Communications worker, who reported a service outage affecting five homes. The outage, first reported on February 22, was traced back to stolen phone lines. Helmer discovered on February 24 that 260 feet of 200-pair phone lines had been cut at Saxton Bolt Road and Coal River Road. The estimated repair cost is $1,443, excluding labor, with replacement costs at $4.81 per foot.
Investigators visited Wood’s Recycling at 1515 Grandview Road in Beaver, WV. The owner reviewed surveillance footage and showed officers video of Austin Buzzard and Michael Stewart bringing in burnt phone wire. The two suspects filled two 55-gallon trash cans with wire. Stewart used his driver’s license to receive $882 for 294 pounds of #2 copper wire. The recycling center confirmed the men had also visited on February 25, bringing in a similar amount of wire, along with #1 copper. Records show Stewart used his ID again to receive $884 for 258 pounds of #2 copper ($748) and 35 pounds of #1 copper ($105).
In total, the stolen copper wire transactions amounted to $1,630.
On February 27, Deputy McDaniel and another officer interviewed Stewart about the theft. Stewart admitted that Buzzard contacted him via Facebook Messenger for rides to the recycling center. He picked Buzzard up on February 25 in Stickney and on February 26 in Glen Daniel, taking him both times to Wood’s Recycling in Raleigh County. Stewart was paid $100 for the first trip and $150 for the second. He also admitted to using his ID for the transactions while Buzzard received the remainder of the money.
