CLEVELAND COUNTY, N.C. — The Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office has announced multiple arrests in connection with a large-scale utility line theft investigation spanning several counties in North Carolina.
The Gaston County Police Department worked with the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office on the investigation, focusing on the theft and destruction of copper wire and fiber optic cable between August and November 2025. These thefts occurred across Cleveland, Gaston, and Lincoln counties, resulting in infrastructure damage and financial loss, investigators said.
Following the coordinated effort, the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office charged several individuals with felony warrants related to the crimes. The charges include felony larceny, possession of stolen goods, receiving stolen goods, obtaining property by false pretenses, injuring wires and other fixtures of telecommunications companies, and conspiracy.
The individuals charged in Cleveland County include Dillon Bo Hall, Cynthia Diane Stamey, Jeremy Ray Tyson, Justin Brian McNeely, John Steven Carpenter, Joshua Neil Robinson, Summer Michelle Brittain, Janet Ledford McDaniel, Hershel Nathan Davis III, Jennifer Marie Propst, and Ashlee Nichole Wyckoff.
The Sheriff’s Office expressed gratitude to partner agencies involved in the investigation and encouraged anyone with additional information to contact the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office or Crime Stoppers.
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