Police: Man Scaled Pole To Reconnect Power
Technician Says Incident Would Have Been 'Near Fatal'


MIMS, Fla. -- A Mims man faces a misdemeanor charge after authorities said he attempted to reconnect his power line after electricity to his house had been disconnected the day before, Local 6 News partner Florida Today reported.

Gregory Dean Renfroe, 44, was charged with criminal mischief after a neighbor flagged down a Brevard County sheriff’s deputy Sunday morning when he noticed a man climbing a power pole, according to a sheriff’s report.

The deputy reported seeing a man standing on the power lines tearing industrial electrical tape from power units and pulling power lines from their original positions.

After jumping down from the power lines, Renfroe reportedly told the deputy he was trying to reconnect the power line that Florida Power and Light disconnected. Renfroe said he was about two months late on his payments and wanted to divert the power to his house until he could make a payment.

An FPL technician who responded to the scene said no major damage was done to the power unit but said that Renfroe’s actions would have been "near fatal" if he had actually connected the wires, according to the report.

P.S....that's Chuck Darwin in the pic