Little Elm police have issued an arrest warrant for a man who has been arrested 50 times and is now accused of stealing copper cable.
Police said they suspect Aaron Amberson of stealing cable from beneath the Lake Little Elm Bridge on at least three occasions over the summer.
"We're talking about several football fields length of cable being stolen over a period of time," Capt. Rodney Harrison said.
He said investigators believe Amberson cut the cable and dragged it out from underneath the structures.
Police said they came to suspect Amberson after investigators found burning copper cable in an attempt to free the metal from its plastic casing during a check of his home earlier this month.
Amberson was charged and jailed on suspicion of burning outdoors during a countywide burn ban.
"At the time, we had to prove where the copper came from and who the actual victim was," Harrison said.
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Police said Amberson had bonded out of jail by the time investigators figured out the cables belonged to AT&T.
"The cost of the cable, the labor to put it in, the inconvenience to the public, is just overwhelming," Harrison said.
Detectives said the cable theft severed service for hundreds of homes, compromising emergency response.
"Really, they're inconveniencing and endangering our public," Harrison said.
Since 2000, Amberson has been arrested 50 times in Denton County alone. Five of the arrests were in connection with felony offenses.
Anyone with information about Amberson's whereabouts is asked to contact the Little Elm Police Department or local police.
