Man Suspected of Stealing Copper Arrested in Nacogdoches County

According to a release from the Nacogdoches County Sheriff's Office (NCSO), a Cherokee County man is in jail after deputies caught him in the act of selling stolen property.

The investigation started on Wednesday, August 22nd when deputies were notified of a burglary of a building on highway 21 West. Stolen from the building was a large amount of copper and other metals. A surveillance camera that was set up in the area provided deputies with a description of the suspect vehicle. Deputies made contact with several metal recycling yards and advised them to be on the lookout for the suspect vehicle.

Later in the evening deputies received a phone call advising that a vehicle matching the description had entered a local metal recycling yard and a man in that car was attempting to sell copper. Deputies quickly arrived on scene and started questioning the suspect. During the interview the suspect gave them a full confession about stealing the items from the building on Highway 21 West. Deputies then went to the suspect’s residence in Cherokee County and collected more stolen property from the building.

The suspect, John Paul Hicks, 35, was arrested for Theft of Property, a State Jail felony, and booked into the Nacogdoches County Jail.