We're paying a heavy price for thieves' thirst for metal

Published on Monday 9 June 2008 10:35

As the value of scrap metal continues to rise so does the urge to steal regardless of the dangers, as Mark McLaughlin discovers.

ON April 29 2008 one of the world's largest non-ferrous metal traders, the London Metal Exchange, sold its first ferrous metal stocks in its 130-year history due to the rocketing demand for steel in fast developing countries such as India and China. And, in anticipation of a growing market, started for the first time tracking the sale of steel.

The growing demand from across the world has sent the price of iron – the core component of ferrous metals such as steel – through the roof, and as a result Edinburgh has been plagued by thieves looking to cash in on the roaring trade in scrap metal.

Police received over 20 reports of scrap metal thefts in May alone, including 40 drain gully covers stolen in Portobello, and last Tuesday two massive spare propellers from the Royal Yacht Britannia made from phosphor bronze.

The problem has become so bad that Lothian and Borders Police have had to draft in a CID officer to co-ordinate the fightback against the metal thieves.

Inspector Steven Gibb, of the divisional intelligence unit, said: "The officer will help implement loss prevention measures, conduct intelligence gathering and implement enforcement measures over and above what we already have in place. This is a growing problem and it's not going to stop with the current price of scrap metal.

"It's a very lucrative business and thieves will go to extreme lengths to get their hands on the metal, with no regard at all for public safety.

"With something like a drain cover, if the theft isn't identified quickly and the area cordoned off, there is a danger a member of the public will injure themselves. Most of these thefts take place at night, so the danger to someone crossing the road in the dark is very high."

Edinburgh City Council environment leader Robert Aldridge said the average cost of replacing a gully cover is 100, but in some cases it may be necessary to replace the entire gully, costing 1000.

He said: "Stealing gully covers is a callous crime which could have serious repercussions in terms of public safety.

"I am very concerned that these selfish acts could seriously endanger pedestrians, cyclists and drivers. In addition, there are substantial cost implications for replacing the stolen covers."

An indication of the lengths that crooks are prepared to go to was given last weekend when thieves broke into two 11,000-volt electricity substations at the Edinburgh International Climbing Centre to steal cable worth less than 20.

In May alone, police were called to investigate the theft of 500 worth of drain covers from Fishwives Causeway; 2650 of aluminium door frames stolen in Ratho Station; 4000 worth of cabling stolen from a building site on West Granton Road; copper piping and lead flashing stolen from Broughton Place; 600 of copper piping stolen from Hawkhill; ten drain covers stolen from South Queensferry; six reels of aircraft quality cabling worth 600 stolen from airport electrical contractor Crown House, as well as various reports of door handles, hinges and locks going missing.

Some local authorities in England have also witnessed gangs of thieves setting up their own roadworks in broad daylight, so they can lift underground BT cables without being disturbed.

A BT spokeswoman has confirmed that this type of crime has not migrated north, but Inspector Gibb believes the reason for this is because the thieves don't have to.

He added: "With the number of building sites in Edinburgh at the moment there are reels of cable just lying around, and there's a valuable lesson there for site managers. The cost to developers of the items getting stolen is massive compared to what the thieves are getting for it. I would be surprised if they're getting any more than ten per cent of the real value.

"We recently arrested two individuals carrying out this activity, and their vehicle's details have been circulated and if it is seen again in suspicious circumstances police have been given authorisation to carry out a stop and search.

"I've even encountered thieves breaking into one scrapyard, to sell scrap on to another."

William Waugh (Edinburgh) Ltd is one of the longest established scrap metal recyclers in Edinburgh.

Its directors have long experience of the variances in scrap metal prices and it has strict procedures in place to make sure all of its scrap is above-board.

A spokesman said: "We keep a record of every item that is brought into our yard, along with the name and address details of the individuals dropping it off and a record of their vehicles.

"Manhole covers are largely made of cast iron and come in all shapes, sizes and weights so it's difficult to put a price on how much such an item is worth. However, the current price for iron is about 150 a tonne.

"Your average wire cable is made up of copper, steel, aluminium and even occasionally lead. It's quite a complex piece of kit so you can get between 500 and 1000 for a ton of cabling.

You can get about 120 a tonne for steel and between 500 and 600 a tonne for aluminium. The prices for iron are at a record high at the moment and still going up.

"These things are cyclical but this is probably the biggest surge we've seen."