Coroner: Electrocuted copper thief found dangling from transform - 14 News, WFIE, Evansville, Henderson, Owensboro

Coroner: Electrocuted copper thief found dangling from transformer

Posted: Updated:
By Jason Old - email
Anthony Williams (Source: Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center) Anthony Williams (Source: Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center)

  • 14 Headlines

  • Thursday, May 23 2013 9:21 AM EDT2013-05-23 13:21:56 GMT
    As of 5:30 Thursday morning, a 14 News Crew is at train derailment on Oak Grove Road. Officials say a train car has come off the track and are currently waiting for a crew from Louisville to get it back
    Officials say traffic is blocked near Kight Lumber and Morgan Avenue.

  • Thursday, May 23 2013 5:03 AM EDT2013-05-23 09:03:58 GMT
    A mobile home catches fire in Henderson for the second time in just over 24 hours. It happened at 622 Graves Drive. Officials say the back of the home caught fire Tuesday night just before midnight and
    Officials say the back of the home caught fire Tuesday night just before midnight and then again around midnight Thursday morning.

  • Child dies after falling from counter at Henderson Captain D's

    Saturday, May 25 2013 8:49 PM EDT2013-05-26 00:49:27 GMT
    Mason Ray Brown died after falling off of a counter at a Captain D's
    Police and family members have confirmed that a 13-month-old child died on Friday after falling from a counter at Captain D's in Henderson. 14 News spoke to police and the boy's grandfather on Saturday.   Police
    A 13-month-old boy died after falling from a counter at a Captain D's restaurant in Henderson.
    •   
COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) -

A tourist from North Carolina taking photos of the old Department of Mental Health State Hospital grounds discovered a man who had been electrocuted while trying to steal copper, according to authorities.

Richland County Coroner Gary Watts said the discovery happened Sunday morning on the grounds of the old State Hospital property off of Bull Street in downtown Columbia.

Anthony Williams, 39, of Columbia was found hanging by a harness strapped to a frame holding electrical transformers approximately 20 feet in the air. It appears he was attempting to steal copper from the transformers, the coroner said.

Williams' body may have been there for a couple of days, according to Watts.

The coroner said a lot of the property at the location has been abandoned, but the power lines and transformers are still live.

Because the incident happened on state property, SLED is handling the criminal investigation.

Copyright 2013 WIS. All rights reserved.