A man accused of committing a rash a home burglaries in Oakwood and Kettering in January, in which thousands of dollars of copper pipes and tubing were stolen, has been indicted on 23 criminal charges.

Christopher Joseph Knox, 37, has been in the Montgomery County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bond since his arrest on Feb. 4.

Prosecutors originally charged him with one count of burglary, but said more charges would be pending once the case was presented to a grand jury.

More than 30 break-ins took place at vacant residences and investigators with the Oakwood and Kettering police departments were able to identify Knox as being the alleged perpetrator in 21 of them.

He has been indicted on 21 counts of burglary, one count of possession of criminal tools and one count of receiving stolen property.

Each count of burglary is a third-degree felony, punishable by up to 36 months in prison. The other counts are fifth-degree felonies, which carry a maximum of 12 months in prison each.

“These cases are a great example of why all of our local police departments need to closely work together. Criminals don’t respect municipal boundaries. These type of incidents aren’t just an Oakwood or Kettering problem, but a serious issue facing all our communities,” Oakwood police Chief Alex Bebris said in a statement announcing the indictment.