Pitt County deputies have arrested two men for suspected theft of copper from a cell tower in Farmville.

According to the Pitt County Sheriff's Department, the two men were impersonating AT&T contractors at the site on April 17.

After a tip-off, an investigation found that $25,000 worth of copper had been stolen from the cell tower site.

Deputies identified the suspects using a Flock camera system, which showed the vehicle at the site.

Pitt County named the suspects as 47-year-old Douglas Corbett Lee and 36-year-old Joshua Don Taylor, both of Mooresville, North Carolina.

Following warrants, deputies charged the two men with felony larceny, misdemeanor breaking and entering, and second-degree trespassing (misdemeanor). Both suspects were entered into the National Crime Information Center database as wanted persons.

It's not known what impact the copper theft had on the local community, with the sheriff's announcement not highlighting any direct impact on connectivity.

Copper theft is a big issue for mobile carriers, with AT&T hit by more than 10,000 such incidents of theft in the last year.

Such is the issue for AT&T, the carrier has even offered up a cash reward in some states for tips that lead to the arrest and conviction of individuals in order to curb the problem.

DCD covered the issue of theft of telecoms infrastructure in a previous issue of DCD Magazine. Read about it here.