San Francisco police arrested Michael David O’Keefe, 55, allegedly caught fleeing from a manhole on Folsom Street.
San Francisco police this week announced the arrest of suspected copper wire thief Michael David O’Keefe, 55, who was nabbed Saturday after police found him allegedly fleeing from a manhole leading to an underground power vault.
O’Keefe violently resisted arresting officers in the 1600 block of Folsom Street, according to police.
Five high-voltage copper wires were found next to the removed manhole cover, which police said O’Keefe abandoned during the struggle. Each wire was between six and seven feet long.
According to a San Francisco Police Department news release:
“High-voltage wire thieves risk electrocution for scrap metal dealer prices that cap at about $3 dollars a pound.”
Police suspected a second alleged thief in the incident who was able to evade arrest. He was described as a white man, five feet and seven inches, with “scruffy hair” and wearing a black leather jacket. Police later detained a man matching the description.
O’Keeffe was charged with theft, possession of burglary tools and resisting arrest.
A 19-year-old was sentenced Friday for his role in a 2009 Richmond High School homecoming gang rape.
