Area police investigate thefts of scrap metal
Local police are investigating three thefts of items commonly stolen for scrap metal, including one incident in which 3,000 pounds of copper wire was stolen in Ypsilanti Township.
Washtenaw County sheriff’s deputies are investigating the report of 3,000 pounds of copper wire stolen from the Ford Rawsonville Plant, 10300 Textile Road. Investigators began looking into the incident when dispatchers were notified of the crime at 10:15 a.m. Thursday, Sgt. Thomas Pennington said. The exact time of the theft is unknown.
Investigators aren’t sure how the copper wire was stolen from the plant. There have been no arrests in the incident, police said.
Copper wires are often one of the most common targets for thieves who are looking to sell it for scrap metal. While Pennington did not have an exact value for the copper wire, local scrap metal dealer Tom Schoolcraft, of Select Metals Recycling, said last month he buys copper for $3 per pound, giving the scrap metal stolen an approximate value of $9,000.
Pittsfield Township police are also investigating thefts of catalytic converters, commonly sought by thieves for the value of scrap metal they contain.
Three catalytic converters were stolen in two thefts this week, police said. Catalytic converters are the part of motor vehicles that change potentially harmful gases produced by internal combustion engines into non-toxic gases. Because they contain precious metals like platinum, rhodium and palladium, catalytic converters can usually be resold for between $70 and $80.
Police said the first theft happened between 10 p.m. Oct. 10 and 3:50 p.m. Oct. 11 on Glencoe Hills Drive. The second theft, in which two catalytic converters were stolen off vehicles, took place between 11 p.m. Oct. 12 and 8 a.m. Oct. 13 on Varsity Drive, police said.
Police said they have no suspects at this point, and the investigation does not have any leads.
Kyle Feldscher covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at kylefeldscher@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.
Comments
Sallyxyz
Sat, Oct 15, 2011 : 8:15 p.m.
People are stealing shopping carts from grocery stores and selling it as scrap. It doesn't end.
dave
Sun, Oct 16, 2011 : 2:23 a.m.
Buster - Did you slam on your brakes in case she wanted to cross the road?
Buster W.
Sun, Oct 16, 2011 : 1:13 a.m.
Yeah, last Tuesday I saw a woman walking a Kroger shopping cart down Plymouth Road.
Ricebrnr
Sat, Oct 15, 2011 : 4:35 p.m.
For some reason this quote from The Magnificent Seven keeps rolling around in my head: We deal in lead, friend..
Sallyxyz
Mon, Oct 17, 2011 : 2:22 p.m.
Buster W, actually, if you talk to Kroger's on Plymouth, they will tell you that the customers who walk down Plymouth with carts, end up leaving them strewn along Plymouth Rd. There are people who drive around town with pick-up trucks and collect the carts left on streets and take them to scrap places. Kroger has contacted area scrap dealers to be on the lookout for grocery store carts, as it is illegal to steal them and sell them for scrap. Kroger has not been successful in stopping customers from taking the carts from the parking lot and walking to area apartment buildings. Many students in the area do not have cars.
RJA
Sat, Oct 15, 2011 : 2:25 a.m.
And so it just goes on and on. We continue to cut, cut and cut Police, and security guards.