Lisle Man Charged With Crawling Under Fence, Stealing Copper

ELMHURST, IL — A homeless man is accused of digging a hole under a fence and stealing copper from a ComEd facility in Elmhurst. Police say Dale Vandermyde, 50,whose former address was in the 5600 block of Westview Lane in Lisle, was seen taking copper materials and stacking them by the fence near where he slept.

Someone alerted police around 2 a.m. Tuesday after they said they saw Vandermyde taking the copper. When police got to the scene, Vandermyde reportedly told them he dug his way under the fence to break in to the building and steal copper tubing in the hope of reselling it to make a profit.

This isn't the first time Vandermyde has been linked to copper theft. According to the DuPage County Sheriff's Office, Vandermyde was sentenced in 2017 for stealing copper tubing in Downers Grove.