A Moses Lake man is in jail for allegedly stealing materials that were being used to repair a ruptured irrigation canal in the Wheeler area earlier this month.

The Grant County Sheriff's office says it arrested 57-year-old Ivan Puyu in the 5000 block of Road O Northeast on August 17, nearly two weeks after the damaged canal had caused localized flooding in the area.

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Investigators claim Puyu was seen by a U.S. Bureau of Reclamation employee using a saw to steal two large canal liners from a flatbed trailer belonging to the East Columbia Basin Irrigation District.

Officers with the Moses Lake Police Department arrived at the location and detained Puyu, who reportedly told them he had been looking for something to use as the underlayment for a children's playground and thought the liners were being thrown away.

Deputies say Puyu, who had cut the liners into pieces and taken them home, attempted to give them back but they were heavily damaged and had been rendered unusable.

He was arrested for investigation of second-degree theft and second-degree malicious mischief.

The irrigation district says the replacement cost of the two damaged liners - which are similar to very large tarps - is nearly $3,000.

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