HOUSTON – Stealing copper wire is not a new revelation in crime that can lead to lucrative returns for quick work.
However, crooks are now climbing to new heights to make a quick buck - literally.
All across SE Texas, specifically the Houston area, there’s been an uptick in criminals climbing cell towers to steal the copper that helps keep you connected with the world.
“Most of them are climbing,” said Carey McGrew of South Texas Cellular Services, which builds and maintains cell phone towers. “It’s super dangerous. They’re free climbing. So, it’s like you’re putting your life at risk, climbing this to get not much at all. You know, you’d be better off going to get a job than you would putting your life at risk.”
You might be wondering. Why climb the tower? That sounds like it’s really dangerous and difficult.
Well, the answer isn’t all that hard to find.
Criminals have their eyes set on thick telecommunication cables, called trunk, that carries the signal from the ground, up the tower and to the transmitters. This is a gold (or copper) mine for thieves. But to get it down, they need to cut it from the top.
In one stop, they can get away with hundreds of feet of copper wire.
It’s worth thousands in scrap value, but often thieves are paid pennies on the dollar.
“I know that we had one, and he only got 180 bucks at the scrap yard,” McGrew said. “But, I mean, just depending on what they steal, they could get a couple thousand [or a] couple hundred. Just depends on what they’re stealing.”
Some scrap yards know where all this wire is coming from and take advantage of knowing the criminals want cash now.
“It is against the law for scrap yards to buy this wire without proper documentation detailing the ownership of the wire,” said Sgt. Bob Carson with the Houston Police Department’s Metal Theft Unit. “HPD will investigate any scrap yard suspected of breaking this law.”
How Often Is This Happening?
That’s a great question. And the answer is a lot.
The Houston Police Department is investigating at least 20 cases of copper theft from cell phone towers in the last six months.
“Probably 7 or 8 in the last month. Just in the last month,” McGrew said.
Major telecommunications companies say they’re working with authorities in Harris County on a monthly basis to combat the spike in targets on their infrastructure.
But thieves aren’t biased on geographic location.
They’ve hit cell phone towers in several other counties, including Galveston County, where a man was just caught by sheriff’s deputies on Tuesday.
The Galveston County Sheriff’s Office arrested and charged Jimmy Solis, 43, with criminal trespass and stealing copper in connection to the crime. He’s one of several suspects, the sheriff’s office said.
It’s Dangerous Work
That most recent case in Galveston County ended with a crook being caught in the act while roughly 40 feet up in the tower.
According to a local company that services the towers, the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office responded and caught him in the act. While the man was climbing down, he somehow fell about 30 feet to the ground. It’s unclear if Solis was the individual who fell.
“They said that they just told us that he fell and that he hurt his hand,” McGrew explained. “They had to call him and an ambulance. Could have been a whole lot worse.”
Many of these crooks are free climbing the towers, meaning they’re scaling the several hundred-foot metal structures without the proper safety gear.
“If they are climbing or getting hurt on the tower. I mean, all of this is energized,” she said.
This Impacts All Of Us
Not only will could these crimes impact your family’s safety, but also your bottom line.
Each time a thief hits a cell tower, the cell phone carriers, like T-Mobile, Verizon, AT&T and others, have to pay to have the damaged or removed cables replaced.
“It just depends,” McGrew said. “I know that some carriers that I’ve talked to, they’ve spent $10,000. Some of them have spent $20,000. Some of them have spent $25,000.”
At the end of the day, all of that comes back to the customers who see increases in their bills.
KPRC 2 asked some of the nation’s top cell phone carriers for comment on the thefts impacting their operations. Here are their responses:
AT&T:
“We’re actively working with local law enforcement, who is investigating to find those responsible. The public should be aware and report to the police any unmarked (non-AT&T) vehicles or individuals cutting and removing cable.”
Verizon:
“The theft of copper communications cables is illegal and dangerous because it puts our customers and others in jeopardy. If somebody needs to make an emergency phone call, including calls to 911, if their phone line was stolen, they may not be able to do so. These criminal acts have caused significant service delays and public safety concerns for Verizon customers and thousands of dollars in damage to local communities. The company urges anyone with info about these crimes to contact the Verizon Security Control Center at 800-997-3287 and select option 3.”
T-Mobile:
“This isn’t an issue that is significantly impacting how our network operates, however, it is important to note that theft at towers can lead to extremely dangerous conditions for our teams who manage them, so we do have tools in place to help us make sure our sites remain safe.”
Dish Wireless:
“DISH Network, a subsidiary of EchoStar, has experienced an increase in copper thefts in the Houston area at our local cell sites. We have collaborated with other wireless operators in meetings with the Harris County Sheriff’s Department and other law enforcement agencies. Additionally, we have enhanced our security, including advanced monitoring.”
When cell phone towers are damaged, it can leave you and your family in real danger if there were to be an emergency.
“It impacts to people’s ability to call 911,” said Sgt. Carson.
Cell phone towers work like those old pesky Christmas tree lights. When one goes out, they all go out, or a hub of towers goes out.
“Sometimes the towers work as a hub,” McGrew explained. “If they take out one, it takes out like a ring of towers. It would take out seven, eight, maybe even more at a time.”
Cell phone carriers and tower managers are now using high tech surveillance systems and even security cameras to get notifications and video evidence in real time if crooks decide to hit their towers.
While it’s helping catch some crooks, awareness will help curb the problem and keep you connected.
KPRC 2′s Gage Goulding will have a full report on this new crime theft Friday night at 10 p.m.