DALLAS—A suspected copper thief who had to be rescued from a utility pole after he was jolted by a high-voltage wire and burned over half of his body has died.

James Buster McKay, 51, died Saturday at Parkland Memorial Hospital, the Dallas County medical examiner’s office confirmed Monday. He had been listed in critical condition.

A Dallas Fire-Rescue official said McKay had suffered third-degree burns and was burned on about 50 percent of his body.

On Friday, live television coverage of the 1 1/2-hour rescue showed McKay’s shirt in tatters, his jeans mostly burned away from his body. His skin looked red and he appeared to be in extreme pain as rescue personnel eased him down a fire truck’s extended ladder.

Police said when crews arrived, they found cut wires on the ground and McKay stuck between transformers on the pole.