Amador County - The brazen theft of copper and aluminum wire from power boxes in the Martell business park over the Memorial Day holiday has impacted surrounding businesses and is adding up to thousands of dollars in damage. Law enforcement investigators suspect the burglaries to be tied to similar crimes at schools in the Sacramento area. The Amador CHP reports that PG&E workers were on scene before first light Monday (May 31) to repair several pad-mounted transformers and power panels that had been cut open with a blowtorch sometime late Sunday evening or earlier in the morning. An unknown number of vandals stole high-grade and highly conducive copper and aluminum wire and broke into an empty building in the business park. Police suspect the thieves will attempt to resell these metals, as there price remains high during the economic downturn. Investigators also suspect the crime to be tied to a similar burglary Monday night at Bancroft Elementary School in Sacramento, where thieves cut live power lines to steal about 100 feet of copper cable running to a wing of classrooms. They believe multiple people were involved in the crime, which required lifting a heavy cement slab to reach wires underground. Susan Manning of the Feed Barn, which sits adjacent to the business park, said she came in Monday morning to discover the Ford Super Duty truck her business uses to haul supplies was missing. She suspects it was stolen by the thieves. She immediately filed a report with the CHP, who discovered it the next day parked behind the Health and Human Services building on Conductor Boulevard. “It’s kind of scary to think there are people like this out there committing these sorts of premeditated crimes,” she said. The company’s Barn Manager said mats used to line the floor of horse stalls were also stolen and found on the bed of the truck. She speculated that the mats were laid down to prevent electric shock as the suspects transferred the stolen wire to the bed. Manning said the thieves also made an unsuccessful attempt to steal wire from the power pad at the Feed Barn. She discovered the panel door and gate open, but no wire was stolen. Marry Simoni, an employee at Skintique Day Spa, said employees were left in the dark Tuesday when they discovered they had no electricity or phone service. “We had to wait until repairs were made, and it messed up our AT&T connection,” she said. PG&E employees restored power to the business later that day. PG&E has responded to similar burglaries in the Central Valley, and most are considered to be coordinated efforts where thieves had some knowledge of power distribution. Damage estimates are as much as $8000. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. -
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Amador County - The brazen theft of copper and aluminum wire from power boxes in the Martell business park over the Memorial Day holiday has impacted surrounding businesses and is adding up to thousands of dollars in damage. Law enforcement investigators suspect the burglaries to be tied to similar crimes at schools in the Sacramento area. The Amador CHP reports that PG&E workers were on scene before first light Monday (May 31) to repair several pad-mounted transformers and power panels that had been cut open with a blowtorch sometime late Sunday evening or earlier in the morning. An unknown number of vandals stole high-grade and highly conducive copper and aluminum wire and broke into an empty building in the business park. Police suspect the thieves will attempt to resell these metals, as there price remains high during the economic downturn. Investigators also suspect the crime to be tied to a similar burglary Monday night at Bancroft Elementary School in Sacramento, where thieves cut live power lines to steal about 100 feet of copper cable running to a wing of classrooms. They believe multiple people were involved in the crime, which required lifting a heavy cement slab to reach wires underground. Susan Manning of the Feed Barn, which sits adjacent to the business park, said she came in Monday morning to discover the Ford Super Duty truck her business uses to haul supplies was missing. She suspects it was stolen by the thieves. She immediately filed a report with the CHP, who discovered it the next day parked behind the Health and Human Services building on Conductor Boulevard. “It’s kind of scary to think there are people like this out there committing these sorts of premeditated crimes,” she said. The company’s Barn Manager said mats used to line the floor of horse stalls were also stolen and found on the bed of the truck. She speculated that the mats were laid down to prevent electric shock as the suspects transferred the stolen wire to the bed. Manning said the thieves also made an unsuccessful attempt to steal wire from the power pad at the Feed Barn. She discovered the panel door and gate open, but no wire was stolen. Marry Simoni, an employee at Skintique Day Spa, said employees were left in the dark Tuesday when they discovered they had no electricity or phone service. “We had to wait until repairs were made, and it messed up our AT&T connection,” she said. PG&E employees restored power to the business later that day. PG&E has responded to similar burglaries in the Central Valley, and most are considered to be coordinated efforts where thieves had some knowledge of power distribution. Damage estimates are as much as $8000. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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