The arrest of Raymond Michael Baker today involved the theft of several thousand pounds of copper stolen from a construction site on the Centennial Campus of North Carolina State University, campus police said this afternoon.

Major Frank Brinkley said NCSU police began investigating missing copper in September and completed their investigation Wednesday, drawing warrants for Baker, 41, for seven counts of larceny by employee and seven counts of obtaining property by false pretense. Those warrants were served by the Halifax County Sheriff's Office today.

Brinkley said Baker probably made $50,000 by allegedly selling the copper to area scrap yards.

While not an employee of North Carolina State, Baker was employed by M.C. Dean, a construction company doing work on the campus. His job gave him access to the copper, Brinkley said. “There's no motivation that we can speak to other than money.”