Hum Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Copper is such a hot commodity that thieves are going after the metal anywhere they can find it: an electrical power station in Wichita, Kan., or half a dozen middle-class homes in Morris Township, N.J. Even on a Utah highway construction site, crooks managed to abscond with six miles of copper wire.Those are just a handful of recent targets across the U.S. in the $1 billion business of copper theft."There's no question the theft has gotten much, much worse," said Mike Adelizzi, president of the American Supply Association , a nonprofit group representing distributors and suppliers in the plumbing, heating, cooling and industrial pipe industries."There was a perception that copper theft slowed down after the recession, and the rise in commodity prices seemed to ease off," he said. "But that's not the case. The theft has only been growing."Stolen copper is valuable as scrap because the metal is used for so many items-from fiber optics to plumbing to anything electrical-and the profits are tempting. "Copper prices have leveled since the recession, but they're still high enough to have people steal it," said Michael Gurka, managing director of Spectrum Asset Management, a Chicago investment firm."It's also a very tangible asset and hard to trace, and reselling it can bring in lots of money," he added. Ten years ago, copper futures traded at 80 cents a pound on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. By 2006, they were at $4 a pound. They are now trading at about $3 a pound , lower than seven years ago but still 375 percent higher than 2003.According to the latest statistics from the National Insurance Crime Bureau , which tracks incidents of metal theft, 25,083 claims were filed from 2009 to 2012, compared with 13,861 from 2006 to 2008. Nearly 96 percent of the claims in the more recent period were for copper theft.The five leading states for the thefts are Ohio, Texas, Georgia, California and Illinois, the NICB said.more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Radium Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 I notice it here too. I'm a train driver in Sweden and every now and then, some lunatic steals small stumps of copper wire that belong to the signaling or the electrical system, causing signal failures or making the railway a high voltage hazard even for the trains and professionals. Causing significant delays or complete lockdowns of the lines. They cut off everything they find, an inch is enough, anything will do. It's really annoying!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
techbeck Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 ummm, this has been happening for years. Especially since the housing market tanked and people been stealing from vacant houses. Justice is served tho when idiots get electrocuted. I have also heard where bridges are cut up over night and the steel stolen. Davo 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleNeutrino Veteran Posted July 31, 2013 Veteran Share Posted July 31, 2013 not sure about elsewhere however, in ohio they now require you to register using your State issued ID in order to sell scrap metal. and they catalog everything you sell. Businesses that do not do this are fined for failure to comply. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arachno 1D Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Its been an ongoing issue in the UK with the same issue in regard to signalling cables and lead roofing,there was even one report of several houses in one row having all the lead flashing removed overnight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Growled Member Posted July 31, 2013 Member Share Posted July 31, 2013 It has been happening for years but it seems the thieves are getting much bolder than they use to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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