You might call them the Coca-Cola bandits. Eight suspects are in jail charged with stealing money from vending machines across the Pine Belt. The arrests were the result of a joint law enforcement effort.
"Over a period of about 10 days we had over 95 drink machines that were vandalized," says Forrest County Sheriff Billy McGee.
McGee says the bandits worked out of Perry, Forrest and Lamar counties. But thanks to a joint effort most were caught.
"We all got together and formed a little task force and put our people out to try and locate them," he says.
But McGee says one more suspect is at large. He is 32-year-old Edward William Freeman of Petal, who McGee says was caught in the act on surveillance cameras.
Mcgee says once Freeman is captured, he and the rest could face felony charges that carry up to five years in prison.
The suspects will make their initial court appearance in Hattiesburg on Wednesday.
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