A man and woman have been arrested on suspicion of destroying part of an Oklahoma radio station's 500-foot tower to steal copper, Choctaw County Sheriff Terry Park said.
This tower in Hugo belongs to Payne Media Group's station K95.5. The radio station posted a video of the damage on Facebook following the vandalism on January 15th.
The video, which the station released to Fox News, was narrated by Will Payne, who said: “They cut the guy wire on one leg and it brought the whole top down.” Then the demolition proceeded.
The severed hardware was shown as viewers were told how the transmission line connected to the antenna became a target for thieves.
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“What these copper thieves are doing is cutting the copper into 10-foot pieces,” Payne said. “At this point we know there are probably eight to 10 of these sections in the back of the truck or van. This is something we need to be aware of and would appreciate your help in figuring it out. The next step is what to do to rebuild this place. ”
“Let's make them pay,” Payne said of the overnight crime that left a broken tower on the ground. He said the value of the copper extracted was only around $100, but Sheriff Park believes that is not the case.
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Radio Tower Copper Theft Suspect Candice Logan is photographed with a car that has what appears to be copper in its trunk. (Facebook/Terry Park)
Copper theft suspect Matt Wilson is in custody. (Facebook/Terry Park)
“Copper loss is several hundred dollars and damage to tower and building is approximately $500,000,” Park posted on his Facebook page.
The station, identified by the call letter KITX, is not yet available over the air due to tower damage, but can be heard online. Updates regarding the investigation are also posted on Facebook.
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Sheriff Park identified the suspects as Matt Wilson and Candice Logan. Local media outlet Paris News identified Wilson as 37 years old and Logan as 34 years old, and the investigation is ongoing.
The tower was built in 2017, and K95.5 is the first FM station to serve northeast Texas and southeast Oklahoma, a spokesperson for the station told Fox News via Facebook Messenger. They added that the local community's response has been “humbled”.
