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Metal buyers on the lookout

Vigilant buyers appear to be keeping a lid on the amount of copper wire and pipe being stolen for resale in Red Deer.
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HMI Industries employees Eleazar Delgado Werner Perez and Kale Huhn sort through a pile of copper wire at the Red Deer metal recycling business. HMI Industries has implemented a security system to discourage people from bringing in stolen metal products.

Vigilant buyers appear to be keeping a lid on the amount of copper wire and pipe being stolen for resale in Red Deer.

Red Deer City RCMP report relatively few cases of copper theft over 2010, media liaison officer Const. Chris Kosack said on Thursday.

In those cases that have been uncovered, the metal is being stolen by people looking for some quick cash by selling it as salvage, said Kosack.

Bob Bevins, owner of Bulldog Scrap Metal in the Riverside Industrial Park, recalled one seller who had brought in two or three loads of mixed metals, including copper, before raising suspicions.

Bevins said he was suspicious about where someone who looked like an oilfield worker was coming up with so much scrap metal.

Police investigating Bevins’s suspicions found out that it wasn’t just the scrap that had been stolen ­— it had been delivered in a stolen pickup truck.

Bevins said he will not accept salvage from people who appear high on drugs or just coming down because they are the ones most likely to have resorted to stealing copper to support their habits.

He and his staff have two options when they have concerns about someone bringing metals in for salvage.

They can call police, or they can simply turn the seller away.

Bulldog staff record licence plate numbers and write down the names of people delivering salvage, but they have no way of knowing whether people are giving their real names, said Bevins.

Far away from the city core, HMI Industries in the northeast corner of Edgar Industrial Park has worked with the RCMP to set up security systems aimed at discouraging thieves from bringing in stolen goods.

Copper is a prime target because, at roughly $6.50 per kilogram, it’s worth about 20 times as much as steel or iron, said HMI Industries president Shandy Vida.

Every load that comes in is captured on camera and recorded, as are the transactions that take place with the sellers.

People are also required to show their identification before they can leave with their cash and all details are recorded and tracked in the company’s computer system, said Vida.

He credits the ramped-up security systems and co-operation with the RCMP for discouraging people from bringing stolen scrap to his yard for sale.

In the last few months, one person has been apprehended in the yard after attempting to bring in a load of stolen scrap, but those occasions are becoming more rare, said Vida.

“We don’t see those guys any more,” he said.

“It’s a very small percentage of people who are stealing stuff and bringing it in. The less reputable folks know there are other places they can sell the material rather than take a chance here.”

Bevins said word gets out that loads will be scrutinized and questions will be asked. Sellers who have been turned away in Red Deer can always try their luck in other centres, including Calgary and Edmonton, he said.

bkossowan@www.reddeeradvocate.com