WHITESVILLE, W.Va. — Two men charged in connection with a recent idled mine break-in were taken into custody Friday night.
Authorities said Eddie Williams, 53, of Artie, and Cody Beverly, 21, of Dorthy, were in jail. Williams turned himself in and Beverly was picked up in Whitesville.
The Raleigh County Sheriff’s Office issued arrest warrants for Williams, Beverly, Kayla Williams, 25, of Artie, and Erica Treadway, 31, of Pax, Thursday and Friday.
Authorities said all four entered the Rock House Powellton mine two weeks ago to steal copper. Williams found his way out of the mine but the other three had to be rescued.
The charges include illegally entering the mine, providing false information to police and felony conspiracy.
The criminal complaint in the Williams case told the story of what unfolded ahead of their dramatic rescue. The idea was to “mine wire” which is the term used in describing the plan to investigators.
Raleigh County Detective Cory Suman was alerted Dec. 9 the four may be trapped in the mine. He went to the entrance and found Beverly’s ATV. He also noticed a burned ring with some copper indicating a fire to melt the plastic insulation off copper wire, which is a common practice when the material is stolen for resale.
The search attempt was already in motion when Eddie Williams emerged from the mine Dec. 10. However, he did not immediately go to authorities for help. He caught a ride with his girlfriend to Whitesville. Police contacted Eddie at the home and brought him to the local Alpha Natural Resources office where he was questioned about whether the other three were still in side.
In his initial statement to police Eddie claimed the other three went into the mine without him and he had gone in looking for them when they did not emerged after a day. Police say after further questioning however, he changed his story and admitted they were looking for copper wire.
In subsequent interview with deputies Eddie indicated the four paired off once they were inside and went to different areas of the mine to have sex. The other three members of the group backed up the claim after their rescue.
Beverley later told police the girls were panicking and Williams had left within hours of their entering the mine. A team from the state office of Miner’s Health Safety and Training, Contura Energy, and the West Virginia National Guard rescued them four days after they went into the mine.