Nov 29, 2007 10:56 pm US/Central
'U' Student, Men Charged With Cutting Power Lines
ST. PAUL (WCCO) ―
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Court papers say damage to the two Qwest utility boxes knocked out phone service to 300,000 customers.
CBS
The FBI is investigating a University of Minnesota student and two other young men suspected of cutting power lines around the state.
University of Minnesota engineering student, 21-year-old Levi Glennie, was charged with damage to two Qwest phone utility boxes. Ian McCombs, 22, and Christopher Walter, 26, were also charged.
"I was watching TV and the power went out. It was about 11:45, midnight," said Dan Hamilton who lives near some electric and phone utility boxes.
After a black out earlier this month, police surrounded the area.
"Had a blue van pulled over and they were pulling guys out of it," said Hamilton.
Court papers say damage to the two Qwest utility boxes knocked out phone service to 300,000 customers.
The FBI is investigating whether they also damaged Xcel Energy utility boxes. Investigators say that damage has cause widespread power outages around Minnesota since July.
"I don't know why they would want to do anything like that, especially now that it's winter time, cutting power isn't a good thing," said Hamilton.
St. Paul police executed a search warrant at Glennie's house near the university. They say they found a large amount of equipment, burglary tools and electronics stolen from utility companies and the University of Minnesota.
"It offends me quite a bit because I spend a lot of tuition that goes to pay for those electronics," said the suspect's neighbor Rick Hillstrom, who's also experienced recent power outages.
Walter and McCombs both have criminal backgrounds. Police said they don't have a motive yet for the utility box tampering because the contents aren't worth much.
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