Hey these people need to work...They have to supplement their government paychecks.....What is that called...oh yes...right American ingenuity...:-)
You wouldn't expect thieves to follow the commodities market, but apparently they do. Just ask any homeowner or business person who's had their copper wiring ripped off.
It's gotten so bad that the Richmond County Sheriff's Office has been cracking down on copper thieves, which included the recent arrest of one man whom authorities say they caught carrying a large amount of copper wire into Newell Recycling Augusta-LLC on Molly Pond Road. Calvin Burnett, 25, of Augusta, is charged with causing more than $1 million in damages at the former Regency Mall, where 57 rooftop commercial air-conditioning units were stripped of their copper.
Copper couldn't be a duller or more un-glitzy commodity, yet its price has more than quadrupled since 2004 because of the rise of emerging global economies, especially China and India. The metal is widely used in construction, especially for pipes and electric wiring.
Even so, copper thieves must be desperate, because even with the soaring prices, they only get about $2 a pound at recycling centers. A heavy load can bring them a few hundred dollars, but the real loss to businesses and homeowners who are victims of the thefts are the damages left behind. They can total thousands or tens of thousands of dollars, or, as at Regency Mall, more than $1 million.
Sheriff's Lt. Tony Walden, who's heading the Richmond County crackdown, says copper theft reports have been going down in recent weeks, and the good news is they may go down even further, as copper prices have been taking a hit on the global markets in recent days.
Some states have been considering legislation to combat copper thieves. California, for instance, is looking at bills that would require recycling centers to fingerprint and photograph copper sellers and to pay them only by check. So far there's been little talk of that in our two-state area, and let's hope it stays that way.
Too many rules and regulations could stifle the recycling business, and that would not be a good thing. On the other hand, if copper prices resume their upward flight, something more will have to be done than having local police periodically drop in on recycling centers in hopes of catching thieves in the act of trying to sell ill-gotten gains.
Comments
Hey these people need to work...They have to supplement their government paychecks.....What is that called...oh yes...right American ingenuity...:-)
Yes, all that copper was doing so much good in the Regency Mall. What do you expect when you let a building just sit there unoccupied? Shocking, i tell you, shocking!
Justifiable theft shivas? Would you feel the same if they felt justified robbing your house?
The same people that will work for hours crawling under a house and stealing the wiring or spend days stealing copper off of the mall wouldn't consider getting a legitimate job and putting out the effort they exert in their thefts. The product of parenting at its worst.
Shivas per your thinking....You leave your home for an extended stay or leave and have no idea your trip was going to take you away for such a long while....therefore because you are not there...thieves have the right to come in and plunder your home because you are not occupying said dwelling....A poor downtrodden person isn't a thief unless they touch something of yours.....right....
Shivas...I have said it all along, now you have really put your stamp on it...idiot! Last week you tried to justify rape and now thieviery. You need help, or taken behind the wood shed. Being conservative, I prefer the latter.
This is how they get their money to buy crack.
Dang, shivas, Lent didn't do you much good, did it? You might want to suck that comment back up before too many more people read it.
Yes, let's create new laws for copper theft because the current laws aren't sufficient. That's a good use of government time and resources. I don't read Shivas comment as stating justifiable theft, that's just patriciathomas taking advantage of the opening Shivas left. I read it as stating that crime is to be expected in areas where there are abandoned buildings and a lot of low income people living nearby. Of course, I see the world in shades of gray that seem to escape both Shivas and patriciathomas who see everything as black and white (no, that wasn't a race-baiting comment).
Well, Shivas, how about taking a few weeks off on vacation. I'll see how much of your copper wiring I can steal and see how you feel about it. That mall belongs to some one-it is private property protected by law. Put the thieves in jail and make them apy restitution when they get out.
c'mon, guys, shivas is perfectly consistent. He supports a political ideology BUILT on the idea of taking away our money because we aren't doing the "right" things with it. What's your problem? Leave shivas alone; he'll vote that way in November, too :)
Hunger is NEVER an excuse for stealing. Read Proverbs.
iknewyourmother, great race-baiting comment. Seems you have a major problem with decision making even with all necessary evidence. A touch liberal, are we? Crime is ok because it's to be expected? Low income justifies it? I hope you aren't in any position of authority. (nothing in here was personal)
My mother didn't raise him to be like that we had a great mother so please keep her name out of your mouth before u lose something like your soul Calvin's sister
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