Two men were arrested on Tuesday, February 25 in connection with the theft of several thousand pounds of copper from the Beldon Plant in Monticello.

According to the Monticello Police Department, Christopher C. Pruitt, 36, of Burkesville, was charged with theft by deception over $10,000 and receiving stolen property over $10,000.

Jimmy Lee Pruitt, 45, also of Burkesville, was charged with theft by deception over $10,000 and criminal possession of a forged instrument second degree.

Police said that Jimmy Pruitt was an employee of Beldon Corporation.

Both suspects were lodged in Wayne County Detention Center.

The arrests came as a result of a confidential investigation opened by the Monticello Police Department in December 2013 at the request of management at the Beldon Corporation Monticello Plant.

The police department was assisted in the arrests by two Wayne County deputies.

The investigation is continuing.

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Training and coaching are integral parts of developing entrepreneurs. That’s why Kentucky Highlands Investment Corporation is launching the eCoaches initiative in Bell, Clay and Wayne counties.

“E” stands for entrepreneur. KHIC will utilize local business leaders and entrepreneurs to take the lead and promote the opportunities available to area businesses.

Entrepreneurs will be guided by a local eCoach, who will evaluate their needs and guide them into programs, education or association that can solve their problems to help them become more successful. The solutions will come from within the region by the people who know it best.

“Studies show that bringing entrepreneurs together motivates them and stimulates ideas,” said Bill Shutters, director of the Kentucky Highlands Innovation Center. “In the past, most of the wealth in the region has been accumulated as a result of mining. We’re going to mine for entrepreneurs.”

The coaches will be entrepreneurs in the later stages of their career who have been successful and want to give back as well as local bankers, business owners and agriculture extension agents.”

“I’m in,” said Samuel Coleman, director of the Small Business Development Center in Middlesboro. “I have worked with a lot of entrepreneurs and a lot of business owners. This is exactly what we need. The eCoaches program takes the resources we all need and puts them into the community’s hands in a way that makes sense.”

KHIC is asking volunteers to make a three-year commitment of two hours a week to be engaged in the community, provide feedback, help organize classes and mentor budging entrepreneurs.

Together, KHIC and the eCoaches will be targeting high-potential entrepreneurs who have had some success and want to start another business but need assistance on how to channel their ideas into market opportunities. In addition, they will be looking for entrepreneurs who have had success locally and have the potential to sell to markets outside the region, and businesses that attract visitors into the region, such as tourism and artisan industries.

Funded by the Rural Community Development Initiative grant from the USDA, this training will teach people how to identify, train and coach entrepreneurs in their local communities.

The hub of the program will be local coffee shops or other common community locations, which will become an informal networking headquarters for entrepreneurs. They can share work space, participate in networking events and connect to webinars done through the Kentucky Highlands Innovation Center in London.

The program also will rely heavily on social media to send information to coaches, gain feedback from them and foster discussions among entrepreneurs.

This is a pilot program for the Promise Zone. Located in Bell, Harlan, Letcher, Perry, Leslie, Clay Knox counties and part of Whitley County, the Promise Zone will provide a competitive advantage for federal grants and assistance from federal agencies to maximize federal and private investment.

“The Promise Zone is a laboratory,” Schutters said. “Anything we do in those eight counties can be replicated and rolled out to the region and beyond.”

Upcoming classes include two classes on QuickBooks in the Cloud–one from 10 a.m. to noon March 12 at the courthouse in Manchester and the other from 10 a.m. to noon March 18 at the ASPIRE Center in Monticello.

To learn more or become an e-coach, visit www.khicenter.com/events.