ST. LOUIS – Prosecutors have charged six people with felonies in connection with two separate wire thefts reported in St. Louis police districts under a curfew since last week’s deadly tornado.

The St. Louis Circuit Attorney’s Office has charged Joshua Mueller, 44; Jesse Page, 37; and Jeffrey McPeek, 54, each with one count of stealing – $750 or more and tampering with service or utility or institution over a Wednesday wire theft scheme.

Prosecutors also charged Pamela Ramsey, 52; Reginald Simmons, 56; and Brianca Brown, 32, each with one count of stealing – $750 or more over a Tuesday wire theft scheme.

The charges come amid growing concerns over looting and curfew violations in tornado-damaged areas. St. Louis Police Chief Robert Tracy first acknowledged two curfew violations that led to arrests, including one involving copper wire, during a Tuesday news conference.

On Wednesday, police say one officer was assigned to a disaster relief detail focused on “the prevention of looting and wire thievery,” when he witnessed a suspicious pickup truck with Illinois plates but no registration, according to court documents.

Believing the vehicle might have been used for stealing copper wire from downed power lines, the officer conducted a covert surveillance operation.

During that time, three people exited the vehicle, and all were detained a short time later. Police identified the suspects as McPeek, Mueller, and Page, and the responding officer noticed “copious amounts of bare wire,” per court documents.

Police later learned that some of the wire in the truck was taken in the City of St. Louis and some was taken from Granite City, Illinois.

One day earlier, police responded to a call for a theft in progress near North Taylor and Maffitt avenues. A caller observed three people in a gray vehicle stealing electrical wire from an alley.

Police later tracked down the vehicle, leading to the arrests of Ramsey, Brown and Simmons. When officers searched the trunk, they found a significant quantity of stolen electrical wire, valued at more than $750.

Both wire thefts occurred in districts under a St. Louis-police ordered curfew after an EF-3 tornado struck last Friday, killing five and damaging thousands of buildings. Police probable cause statements did not specify whether either theft happened during curfew hours.

All six suspects are being held without bond, per Missouri court records.