Two men are facing federal and state charges in connection with a rash of thefts of copper wire in Northwest Indiana and Illinois.
Diquan Ray, 23, of Burnham, Ill., and Jossean Echevarria, 30, of Hammond, each were charged in a criminal complaint filed Monday in federal court in Hammond with interstate transportation of stolen property.
On Friday, investigators were conducting surveillance on a green 2001 Chevrolet Blazer with an Indiana license plate registered to Echevarria, also known as Eschevarria, court records show.
Investigators spotted the Blazer parked at River Oaks Center in Calumet City, Ill., and Echevarria, who was wearing a backpack, and Ray walked out of Clayhole Woods, which is a Cook County forest preserve, the complaint states.
Echevarria and Ray got in the Blazer and drove onto the forest preserve property and remained there from 11:30 p.m. to 1:41 a.m. before heading north on Torrence Avenue, according to the complaint.
“Investigators entered Clayhole Woods and confirmed that a theft of copper wire occurred and radioed the information to other investigators,” the complaint states.
Officers stopped the Blazer at Detroit Street and Lyman Avenue in Hammond and saw “a large amount of coiled copper wire in the back of the Chevrolet Blazer,” according to the complaint.
“The wire appeared as if it was freshly removed from the ground, as it contained dirt and mud on it,” the complaint states.
Echevarria was the driver of the Blazer, and “his hands, shoes and clothing were very dirty,” according to the complaint. Ray, who was the passenger, also had dirty hands and clothing,” the complaint states.
Echevarria admitted “to stealing the copper wire in his vehicle from the forest preserve and driving it to Indiana,” according to the complaint. The wire was valued at more than $5,000, the complaint states.
“He also admitted to being involved in several other copper wire thefts in northwest Indiana and Illinois,” the complaint states.
Hearing dates in federal court had not been scheduled for the two as of Tuesday morning, according to court records.
Echevarria and Ray each were
Echevarria has a formal appearance scheduled Oct. 12 in Lake Superior Court, while Ray is set for Oct. 10, court records show.
The investigation, which focused on “numerous wire thefts occurring in Northwest Indiana and Northeast Illinois” between May and Sept. 29, was conducted by Hammond police, Lansing, Ill., police, the Cook County sheriff’s office and the FBI’s Gang Response Investigating Team, or GRIT, according to the complaint.
There were at least 20 thefts from public property, including sports fields at schools, with damage estimated to be more than $250,000, the complaint states.
While Echevarria and Ray are the primary suspects, the Hammond Police Department still is investigating, and more people may be charged, said Lt. Steve Kellogg, police spokesman.
On Friday, Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. announced a
McDermott also said he “will be following these arrests up with civil lawsuits, on behalf of the Hammond residents, against these two individuals to try and recoup the hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage.”
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