Lake Charles –
On February 27, Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies were dispatched to a local business on Sampson Street in Westlake regarding an employee stealing from the company. Upon arrival, deputies spoke with the owner who advised employee Michael L. Tyree Jr., 26, 6859 Tom Hebert Road, Lake Charles, had been stealing copper wire from the company. The owner told deputies that they had been going over invoices and discovered an estimated $22,000 worth of copper wire that Tyree purchased for the company was missing.
During the investigation it was revealed that beginning in November of 2014 until he was terminated in February, Tyree would purchase copper wire through company invoices and then sell it to a scrap yard in Texas and keep the money.
On March 18, Tyree was arrested and booked into the Calcasieu Correctional Center and charged with theft $5,000 to $25,000. He has been released on a $10,000 bond set by Judge Robert Wyatt.
The investigation is ongoing and more charges may follow.
CPSO Detective Deveda Benoit is the lead investigator on this case.