Aurora Man Allegedly Goes Years Without Paying For Utilities

Timothy Miller is facing multiple years of jail time.

Timothy A. Miller. Photo by Dearborn County Sheriff's Office. 

(Aurora, Ind.) - An Aurora man has been arrested for allegedly devising a scheme to receive utilities for free.

Timothy A. Miller, 59, was taken into custody on Monday and charged with Corrupt Business Influence (Level 5 Felony), and two counts of Theft (Level 6 Felony). 

Miller came under investigation in November of 2020 when Dearborn County Sheriff's detectives received photos taken from the basement of Miller's home on Blair Road. The photos allegedly showed the existing Aurora Utilities natural gas line, which appeared to have been bypassed - allowing the Miller's to use gas at no cost. 

Further investigation showed that Miller had a natural gas line installed into the home in 2005. According to a probable cause affidavit, Aurora Utility records beginning in April of 2011 showed minimal to zero cubic feet consumption rate that continues to October of 2020 with the majority consumption rate as zero cubic feet. 

The average monthly minimal cubic feet consumption of gas for a home the size of Miller's is approximately 5,700 cubic feet. 

In December of 2020, detective executed a search warrant at Miller's home. In the basement, detectives say they located a gas bypass line made of flex tubing with a pressure regulator that was not installed by Aurora Utilities. The flex tubing was allegedly attached to valves to control the flow of gas near the original Aurora Utilities line installation. The unmeasured gas line flowed to the in-ground pool behind the home, where a gas leak was detected. 

Aurora Utilities was called to assist and cut of the gas service. Due to the time of the year, the water service was also shut off out of fear that the water pipes would freeze without gas to heat the home. However, water allegedly continued to flow to a frost-free hydrant located behind the home. Aurora Utilities investigated the water service issue and discovered a 3/4" CTS brass compression tee had been installed prior to the Aurora Utilities' water meter, bypassing recorded metered water usage. 

Furthermore, the installation of the tee allegedly resulted in the unmetered flow of water to the frost-free hydrant in the rear of the home. 

Aurora Utilities reviewed water service records for the Miller residence from 2003 through 2020, and found that the average monthly minimum usage for water at the home dropped rom approximately 6,000 gallons per month between 2003 and 2009 to usage at or near the minimum of 2,200 gallons per month or below, through 2018. 

Miller is scheduled for a pre-trial hearing on July 28. A jury trial has been set for November 15. 

He is facing one to six years on the Corrupt Business Influence charge, and six months to 2 1/2 years on the two theft charges. 

 

 

 

 

 

More from Local News

Events

NWS Issues Flood Advisory Until 11 AM

Additional rainfall amounts of 0.5 to 1 inch are possible.

2025 Dearborn County Chamber of Commerce Annual Business Breakfast

The Annual Business Breakfast serves as a yearly kick-off event for the Dearborn County business community.

Roadways in Dearborn County Will Start Closing Soon Due to Flooding

Other roadways may close due to water levels.

Local Sports Report - April 2, 2025

Report missing stats and scores to news@eaglecountryonline.com

South Ripley Varsity Basketball Coach Seve Beach Honored by IBCA

He has a 47-25 record in three seasons with the Raiders.

Switzerland County's Cooper Todd Commits to Anderson University

He will now go on to join the defending HCAC champions.

On Air

Eagle Country 99.3 playing
Zac Brown Band - Whatever It Is

Tracy Lawrence How A Cowgirl Says Goodbye 11:35
Brad Paisley No I In Beer 11:32
Shania Twain That Don't Impress Me Much 11:24
Chris Young Getting You Home 11:20