copper wire spoolsThe theft of copper wire from railroad tracks in Texarkana, Ark., in April created a public hazard, a prosecutor said.

Prosecutors in Miller County, Ark., formally charged Jeffrey Duane Procella, 39, last week in theft of metal and felony criminal mischief in the removal of signal wire from a Union Pacific Corp. railroad track in Texarkana.

When signal wire is damaged, the flow of critical railroad information is disrupted. Malfunctioning signals have the potential to cause a train wreck.

Read more from Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette