By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

Copper thieves hit 23 north Nanaimo street lights in brazen theft

Apr 11, 2018 | 12:47 PM

NANAIMO — Copper thieves are making their mark in Nanaimo, most recently stripping more than 20 street lights in the north end.

Nanaimo RCMP Cst. Gary O’Brien said the wiring was yanked out of 23 lamp standards along Uplands Dr., between Hammond Bay and Dover Roads, sometime overnight on April 8. The crime plunged the entire street into darkness and cost several thousand dollars to repair and replace.

O’Brien said it’s typically a multi-day heist, with the suspects going in one night to cut the wiring and returning the next with a truck and large spool to roll it up. He said it’s likely someone from the public saw something but didn’t think anything of it.

“We firmly believe to not attract attention to themselves they may have outfits on, logos on the side of their truck which are totally bogus. People driving by may think they’re legitimate work crews.”

The latest wire theft is one of a dozen documented incidents so far in 2018. O’Brien said the current number of incidents is comparable to years past, but it appears thieves are now targeting the north end of Nanaimo and police are asking people to keep their eyes peeled.

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Other thefts have occurred on Mostar Rd. at Jordan Ave., Maureen Way, Westwood Rd. and Lawlor Rd.

“We’ve got a pretty good idea on who’s doing it, we simply need to catch them in the act. We’re convinced there’s up to three groups of individuals who are responsible for these crimes. Not only in Nanaimo, but other jurisdictions as well.”

While 23 street lights seems like a large-scale theft, O’Brien referenced recent incidents on Nanaimo Lakes Rd. where “hundreds of thousands of dollars” worth of wire went missing.

He said steps are being taken to slow the trend.

“There’s a number of things we can’t get into. But one thing is once the copper wire is gone it’s being replaced with aluminium which is significantly cheaper and there’s really no market and the thieves will soon find that out.”

Anyone with information on this or other copper thefts are urged to contact police or Crime Stoppers.

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