Deputies: Sumter, Clarendon farmers face up to $10K in damage after copper wire theft

Farmers in Sumter and Clarendon Counties have fallen victim to criminals who steal copper wiring from their pivot pumps, said Sumter deputies.

Photo: Sumter County Sheriff's Office

SUMTER COUNTY, S.C. (WOLO)– According to deputies in Sumter and Clarendon counties, farmers are falling victim to thieves.

Deputies say someone is stealing copper wire from equipment used to water large areas of crops and causing upwards of $10 thousand dollars in damage in the process.

Investigators from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office and the Clarendon County Sheriff’s Office have teamed up together to solve the crimes.

“Dishonest people are always looking for a way to steal from good, hard-working people. Farmers are part of the fabric of our culture and some of the hardest working people in America. When a neighbor suffers, we all suffer, so I hope people will step-up and report these thieves,” stated Sumter County Sheriff Anthony Dennis.

Landowners and those working in agriculture are asked to remain vigilant until an arrest is made.

Anyone who notices something out of the ordinary is asked to call 911.

Also, anyone with information on the incidents is asked to call the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office at 803-436-2000.