CLEARFIELD – Five people facing charges for their part in stealing wire from various remote areas of both Clearfield and Centre Counties were in court Wednesday.
Jason Lee Hoover, 48, LeContes Mills, is charged with 18 counts each of felony disruption of service, theft by unlawful taking, criminal mischief, receiving stolen property, and theft of secondary metal, as well as three misdemeanor counts of possession of drug paraphernalia. He waived his right to a preliminary hearing during centralized court Wednesday, sending the case onto the court of common pleas. His bail is $100,000.
Barry Wayne Martell, 37, Woodland, is charged with 17 felony counts each of disruption of service, theft by unlawful taking, criminal mischief, receiving stolen property, and theft of secondary metal. He waived his hearing. His bail was lowered from $200,000 to $100,000.
Damion Scott McGary, 31, Curwensville, is charged with 14 felony counts each of disruption of service and criminal mischief, 13 counts each of theft by unlawful taking, receiving stolen property, and theft of secondary metal. He waived his right to a hearing, prior to Wednesday. He is incarcerated on $200,000 bail.
Robert Joseph Gavlock, 48, Frenchville, is charged with four felony counts each of disruption of service, theft by unlawful taking, criminal mischief, receiving stolen property and theft of secondary metal. He waived his right to a hearing. He remains in custody with his bail set at $50,000.
The thefts took place between March 2024 and Nov. 2025.
According to the affidavits of probable cause, police started investigating in March 2024 the multiple incidents of telephone cable/wire being cut in remote areas. The wire was cut and stripped from the outer insulation and was burned to remove the remaining small wire insulation leaving only the copper wire. This was then taken to various scrap yards and sold.
Using tire tracks, cameras at various nearby locations, and records of the scrap yards, they were able to identify possible suspects.
McGary was taken into custody on Dec. 21, 2024, on a warrant. When he was questioned, he admitted to taking the wire and selling it. Information from the scrap yards confirmed the dates of his transactions matched the time frame of the thefts.
An all-terrain vehicle was spotted near the area of a theft in Girard Township between Dec. 19 and 20, 2024. This ATV was traced back to Hoover.
Another theft on Jan. 6, 2025, was tied to Hoover. Various scrap yards provided information that Hoover made frequent trips to the businesses with large quantities of copper wire.
When Hoover was taken into custody on Jan. 11, 2025, his truck was searched. Police discovered two overflowing buckets of copper wire, telephone wire/cable that was intact, cutting tools, a small amount of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.
Still photos of Hoover and McGary from the scrap yards showing them turning in wire which matched the description of the missing ones.
Hoover’s phone was examined and police found messages indicating Gavlock was involved. The scrap yards had records of Gavlock also selling large quantities of copper wire in time frames that matched the thefts.
Martell was identified as an associate of Hoover. There were records also showing Martell sold large quantities of copper wire as well.
After Martell was turned away from a scrap yard because Hoover had been arrested, his girlfriend, Desarae Kariss Ann James, Woodland, made a trip to a scrap yard to sell a quantity of copper wire. She is charged with felony receiving stolen property. She waived her right to a hearing on Wednesday. Her bail is $50,000, unsecured.
Hoover and Martell were also scheduled for preliminary hearings on an additional case from Nov. 2024. Police say the victim reported that someone entered his barn in Girard Township and removed a ladder which they believed they used to cut down wires around the property.
Another witness told investigators that Hoover and Martell were the ones committing wire thefts and had been in the barn.
After their hearing on Wednesday, District Judge James Glass ruled that all charges be sent to the county court for further disposition. Both men have bail set at $100,000 for this case.
In Nov. Hoover pleaded guilty to felony counts of criminal trespass, criminal mischief and theft by unlawful taking as well as a misdemeanor count of possessing instruments of crime for a separate incident for which he was charged for breaking into a drilling rig.
At that time, he was sentenced by President Judge Fredric J. Ammerman to serve five months to three years in state prison.
Hoover and Martell have more cases in the system for the burglary of a Penelec substation in Bigler Township between Nov. 21, 2024, and Nov. 25, 2024.
According to that affidavit, wire and hand spools worth over $10,000 were taken after someone used bolt cutters to cut the padlock off a door. Hoover and Martell were identified as suspects. Hoover reportedly had a photo on his phone of the stolen items at his residence.
A witness told police they saw the wire at Hoover’s residence and was told by Hoover and Martell that they took it from a power plant.
For this case, Hoover and Martell are charged with burglary, criminal trespass, theft by unlawful taking, theft of secondary metal, criminal mischief and receiving stolen property, all felonies. These cases are still pending.
McGary is also facing felony charges of disruption of service, theft by unlawful taking, criminal mischief, receiving stolen property and theft of secondary metal in connection with his actions in Pike Township on Dec. 21, 2024, where he removed wire. He has signed a plea agreement and is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 24.
