569.090. Tampering in the second degree — penalties.
Messing with someone’s property or utility equipment
Second-degree tampering happens when someone interferes with someone else’s property or utility service without permission.
1. A person commits second-degree tampering if they:
- (1) Mess with someone else’s property to cause serious inconvenience;
- (2) Ride in or on someone else’s vehicle, like a car or boat, without permission;
- (3) Tamper with utility company equipment or make unauthorized connections; or
- (4) Tamper with a utility meter or similar equipment in a way that:
- (a) Prevents it from measuring correctly; or
- (b) Allows someone to use electricity, gas, water, or steam without paying.
2. If the utility equipment is tampered with and someone gets the benefit of free or altered service, that can be used as evidence to show the law was broken.
3. This offense is usually a class A misdemeanor, unless:
- (1) It’s a second or later violation of tampering with a utility meter or equipment — then it’s a class E felony; or
- (2) The person has a previous conviction for certain theft or tampering crimes — then it’s a class D felony.
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