By Jim Clark

A police officer patrolling the Davis Square area on foot last week happened upon two men who were standing near the bushes by the MBTA station on Holland St.

According to reports, the men were observed handling a large plastic bag, which they reportedly walked away from as they noticed the officer approaching.

The officer looked inside the bag and discovered an assortment of copper pipe pieces and electrical wire, police said.

The officer radioed for support in returning the two men to the scene for questioning. They were found at the nearby CVS store and escorted back to where the bag had been found.

The two men were asked if the bag and its contents belonged to them, and they denied that it was theirs. They reportedly told the officer that they had found the bag at either Porter or Harvard Square and brought it there to inspect its contents.

The investigating officer suspected that the men may have been involved in burglarizing building sites in order to collect materials that can be sold for scrap.

The officer asked the men if they would consent to searches and they reportedly agreed.

A small partially emptied bottle of liquor was found on the person of Stephen Danca, 32, of Wakefield. A search of Danca’s backpack also turned up a permanent resident card and visa belonging to another person that, according to reports, Danca said he had found and intended to return to its owner.

The officer reportedly also found a bundle of copper wire in Danca’s backpack, and when asked about it Danca reportedly said that he had gotten it from a trade school he had attended.

Police contacted the school and they could not confirm that Danca was a student there, and that such materials were not allowed to be taken from the school.

Danca was subsequently placed under arrest and charged with violation of city ordinance open container. The scrap material issue is being investigated.