A Beaumont man is facing criminal charges after he was allegedly caught causing costly damage to an Entergy substation in Southeast Texas.

A Jefferson County grand jury last week indicted 48-year-old Sean Ronal Hendry with felony criminal mischief.

He has been accused of damaging the company’s property by cutting electrical wiring at the substation. A damage estimate provided by an Entergy representative revealed more than $57,000 in damages to the substation, court documents said.

The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office received a call shortly after 2:30 p.m. May 14 to the substation at 10764 Old Sour Lake Rd. in Beaumont. Deputies were informed that Entergy had observed a person on the property through its security surveillance system.

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Deputies allegedly observed Hendry within the approximately 6-foot-tall, locked fence, which had three strands of barbed wire along the top.

“The accused fled the property by jumping over the perimeter fence and was apprehended after a foot pursuit,” court documents said.

An Entergy Foreman who arrived on the scene reportedly discovered numerous wires had been cut damaging service to the facility.

“Various tools used for cutting wire and prying open covers and panels to expose the wire were also discovered on scene that do not belong to Entergy,” court documents said. “These tools were discovered throughout the property where wire was discovered to be cut.”

Hendry was arrested that day for evading detention/arrest and criminal trespass. The Entergy representative decided Aug. 1 to press criminal charges against Hendry for the damage.

A significant fire was previously reported in an unrelated incident on May 3 at a different Entergy substation. That fire occurred at the substation in Port Neches. The blaze, caused power outages for nearby neighborhoods. At the time, the incident was under investigation and believed to be related to electrical equipment.

Meagan Ellsworth is the public safety, breaking news and general assignment reporter for the Beaumont Enterprise.