PRACHIN BURI, Thailand – Highway police arrested a man suspected of stealing electrical wires from a roadside lighting pole along Highway 304 in Kabin Buri district, finding seven pieces of copper wire and cutting tools in his bag. Prachin Buri Highway Police, together with officials from the Kabin Buri Highway Maintenance Unit, were conducting crime-prevention patrols along Highway 304 when they spotted a man acting suspiciously near a roadside lighting pole at kilometre 173+500 in Nong Ki subdistrict.
Officers approached the man and found him pulling electrical wires from the base of the lighting pole. Signs of digging were found around the pole, while the electrical wires had been cut.
The man was also holding a pair of wire cutters when officers intervened. A search of his shoulder bag found seven pieces of copper wire, each approximately 37 centimetres long, along with a hammer, construction trowel, another pair of wire cutters and gloves. Police seized the items and took the man into custody for legal action.
He was initially charged with theft of property used or intended for public benefit before being handed over to investigators at Kabin Buri Police Station for further legal proceedings.
Highway police urged members of the public to report suspicious activity involving the theft or damage of public property by calling Highway Police at 1193.
