BOSWELL, Pa.—An Indiana County truck driver is accused of avoiding more than a half-million dollars in tolls by using a stolen E-ZPass transponder.

State Police say 38-year-old Thomas Howard Wambold, of Blairsville, used the E-ZPass more than 1,200 times between September 2005 and this March. Authorities say he owes $575,980 in full fares to the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission.

Police say Wambold admitted using the stolen E-ZPass after he was stopped for a burned-out license plate light. Police say he also exceeded the turnpike's 40-ton weight limit by more than 17 tons.

Wambold is charged with theft, access device fraud, receiving stolen property, possessing instruments of crime and exceeding the weight limit. It's not clear if he has an attorney.

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Information from: The Tribune-Democrat, http://www.tribune-democrat.com