(Michigan City, IN) - A Michigan City man is charged with stealing copper wire belonging to the South Shore Railroad commuter line.

 

Shane Leslie, 28, is accused of taking about 80 feet of copper wire and selling at least some of it for about $200 dollars at a La Porte scrap yard.

 

Police said the wire was cut from two junction boxes near the tracks on N. Range Road about two weeks ago.  Footage from a surveillance camera showed the thief riding there on a scooter and driving off with the wire, police said.

 

According to court documents, officers checking scrap yards in the area discovered the stolen wire purchase was made at Spectrum Recycling where Leslie with help from a staff member was identified as the seller of some of the wire.

It's suspected the remainder of the wire was sold at the same facility by another individual for about $400, according to court documents. 

 

Leslie could face anywhere from a six month to 30 month sentence on a theft charge.