This is a press release courtesy of the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office

Two construction workers arriving on their job site at Southwest 110th & Boeckman Road, in Wilsonville at 7:00 a.m. Friday morning and encountered a male subject overloading his compact pickup truck with downed Portland General Electric (PGE) power lines.

The workers followed the suspect vehicle departing the area and alerted the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office as to the suspected metal theft which resulted in the arrest of the suspect after he was stopped by West Linn Police at the West Linn and I-205 exit at approximately 7:45 a.m.

The apprehended suspect was identified as Destin Jason Nichols, 37, who resides in Portland and has an established criminal history.

Two employees of Kerr Construction, who were instrumental in the resulting arrest were identified as Carl Kroeplin and Robert Snead, employed by Kerr Construction and working at the job site located in Wilsonville.

Reportedly, Kroeplin and Snead arrived at the site at 7:00 a.m. and witnessed a male subject, later identified as Nichols, loading downed PGE power lines into the bed of an older, black, Dodge Dakota pick-up truck with Oregon license plates.

Both Kroeplin and Snead inquired as to what the suspicious person was doing as he was departing the area with an extensive load of 1" braided PGE wire. Reportedly Nichols declared he was an employee of PGE and was taking this load of wire to a PGE lot.

Nichols was taken into custody by Clackamas County Sheriff's Deputies, transported to the Clackamas County Jail and lodged for the related crimes:

• Criminal Mischief 1 - a class C felony
• Theft 1 - a class C felony
• Failing to maintain a metal purchase record - a class B misdemeanor
• Total bail for the aforementioned charges total $33,500

Nichols is scheduled to be arraigned in the Clackamas County Circuit Court on Monday, March 31st at 3:00 p.m.