April 15, 2008
Brandon Haught
Public Information Office

COPPER THIEF SHUTS DOWN RADIO TOWER 

A radio tower in Oak Hill suddenly lost its signal Monday afternoon due to a thief cutting off valuable copper tubing. As soon as Volusia County Sheriff’s Deputies got the call they responded to the scene and with the help of an Oak Hill Police Department officer stopped a man driving away from the tower. He didn’t have the copper in his truck, but tools, gloves and a paint smear on his arm eventually did him in. Brian Benson admitted to taking the tubing and told deputies where the stolen metal could be found. Benson was arrested and booked into the Volusia County Branch Jail in Daytona Beach. 

William Sullivan of Entravision Communications noticed that his company’s tower at 450 W. Putnam Road was losing its signal shortly after 1 p.m. Monday. Thieves had targeted that site twice before this year, once in January and once in March. Copper can fetch a high price at scrap yards. Deputies learned during the January theft that the 80 feet of copper tubing taken then was worth about $2,000. With this history in mind, Sullivan quickly called the Sheriff’s Office for help. 

When deputies arrived on scene they noticed a truck trying to leave the area. Word of the suspicious truck was radioed to local Oak Hill officers who then conducted an investigative traffic stop while deputies took a look around the crime scene. Benson was driving the truck, which had bolt cutters, a cordless trim saw, a cordless jigsaw and gloves inside. But there was no copper. After looking over the crime scene, Deputy Brian Williams drove out to the traffic stop to speak with Benson. Benson said he was in the area looking for hog tracks and that he knew nothing about the copper theft. Williams noticed red paint on Benson’s arm. But there wasn’t enough evidence available to connect Benson to the crime, so he was let go. 

Williams went back to the radio tower to have a closer look. As he reached into an area where the tubing had been cut, Williams got red paint on his arm. Remembering that Benson had paint on his arm, too, Williams then went to Benson’s home to talk with him again. With the evidence building up against him, Benson finally admitted to stealing the copper. He told Williams that the stolen metal could be found in an orange grove near the tower. 

Deputies also investigated theft of copper Monday afternoon from a tower site in Edgewater that belonged to both Volusia County and Verizon Wireless. Taken from the 135 Arthur Ave. address was more than 100 feet of copper wire and other miscellaneous copper pieces. A County employee reported the theft when he noticed a fence around the property was cut. This case is still under investigation. Benson said he had nothing to do with that incident. 

Benson faces charges of burglary, grand theft and possession of burglary tools.