The owner of a recycling center was indicted for 202 counts of scrap metal theft. Between September 2012 and February 2015, the business took over 74,000 pounds of stolen nickel and copper telecommunication lines from West Virginia, Ohio, and Kentucky. The scrap metal was valued at $315,000.
In June 2015, 15 boxes of material from scrap metal theft were found at the recycling center. The stolen boxes contained different types of scrap metal, including copper. The two victimized scrap metal businesses will receive restitution.
Scrap metal theft has become a frequent activity. California, New York, New Jersey, Ohio and Texas have been severely impacted by this problem. Texas created the Texas Metal Theft Statute to decrease copper and metal scrap theft. The statute included mandatory recycling ID cards to regulate metal sales.
Successfully redeemed copper from theft exceeded $1 billion annually. Scrap yard security patrols have increased 75%.
Copper wire was stolen from a Kansas substation that led to $150,000 in damages and power outages in the city. Also, the minimum repair cost from copper theft was about $3,000. Most instances of scrap metal theft occurred at commercial businesses.
The recycling center owner entered a Kennedy plea and could face up to 10 years in prison. He had to forfeit his business license and will never be allowed to apply for one in West Virginia in the future. The events that took place at the recycling center were described as an organized criminal enterprise.
The assistant prosecutor of this trial identified the recycling center as the largest operation involving stolen property in the area. He believed that the arrest would decrease the amount of scrap metal theft because of the recycling center closing.
This recycling center is not a client of Stealth Monitoring.
Stealth Monitoring is a security industry leader in live video surveillance with over 9,000 video cameras watched nationwide. Stealth proactive video monitoring can detect and deter crime in West Virginia and other places in the U.S. and Canada while reducing security guard and other expenses. Stealth’s virtual security guard service can reduce or even replace security guards at a fraction of the cost. A remote surveillance Stealth operator can see unusual activity such as scrap yard copper theft, activate a speaker warning to deter criminals, and call the local police.
Please contact Stealth today for more information to protect your property. Visit our web site to see actual videos of criminals being apprehended at scrap yards, warehouses, and a range of industrial and commercial businesses.
