ANNISTON, Ala. (AP) — Sheriff's officials in Alabama say they discovered the decomposing body of a man who was trying to steal electricity to power his home.

The Calhoun County Sheriff's Office found the body on Friday at the bottom of a power pole at the home near Anniston in northeastern Alabama. Sheriff's officials searched the area after receiving a report of a human skull in the front yard of another home about a quarter mile away.

They identified the victim as Randall Stephens and said Stephens had been released from jail in May.

There was a ladder next to the power pole and a belt and jumper cables at the top of it. The sheriff's office said an investigation determined Stephens was trying to steal power by jumping the power lines.