Trio Faces Charges After Alleged Wire Theft

Three people face charges after local and state police caught them early last Wednesday morning with a vehicle allegedly containing with stolen utility wires inside.

Pennsylvania State Police and Middletown Township officers nabbed Gerald Robert Keating, 54, of Penndel Borough; Nicole Tianna Hatch, 45, of Trevose; and Alexander Troy Joyce, 27, of Langhorne, after reports of wire thefts.

Around 5 a.m. last Wednesday, Pennsylvania State Police were dispatched to the intersection of West Prospect Avenue in Langhorne Manor Borough after a witness reported seeing someone cutting old telephone wires near a parked Jeep, according to court papers.

While troopers were responding, officers with the Middletown Township Police Department stopped a 2014 Jeep Patriot near South Pine Street and Flowers Avenue in Langhorne Borough and alerted troopers.

According to state police, the Middletown Township officers had also received reports of a possible wire theft and spotted the Jeep driving with black wiring hanging out of the back as a person struggled to hold the rear trunk shut.

A search of the vehicle revealed multiple large black wires and various tools, including bolt cutters, state police said.

During the investigation, troopers and officers discovered damage to Verizon utility poles near Bellevue and West Prospect avenues. They also found fresh tire tracks at the scene and debris from wiring left on the ground.

The three occupants – later identified as Keating, Hatch, and Joyce – were detained at the scene.

Keating, Hatch, and Joyce have each been charged with theft of secondary metal and receiving stolen property.

District Judge Daniel Baranoski preliminarily arraigned the trio. All three were initially sent to jail after failing to post bail. As of Monday, Joyce was released after his family posted bail, while Keating and Hatch remained in custody, according to court records.

Editor’s Note: All individuals arrested or charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The story was compiled using information from police and public court documents.