Thieves are breaking into abandoned Richmond residences to steal valuable metals such as copper and aluminum, RCMP said on Tuesday.
It's so common it's called urban mining.
The thieves break into empty homes and take copper pipe and wiring, radiators, appliances and aluminum-framed doors and windows for the metal to sell to scrapyards.
"The price of copper right now is very good and it's expected to rise, so it's getting to become more lucrative for the thieves," said Richmond RCMP spokeswoman Cpl. Sherrdean Turley.
Out of 92 break-and-enters this year, 45 targeted copper wire, 12 targeted tools and 10 zeroed in on large appliances, said Turley.
The thefts occurred at 30 abandoned houses or houses scheduled to be demolished. Other incidents happened at homes that are under construction or have been placed on the market to be sold or leased.
The B.C. government introduced a bill earlier this month that forces scrap-metal yards to record details of people who sell metals, including name, address, phone number and date of birth. The information can be shared with the police after a court order is obtained.
Turley said that even with the new legislation, police need the public's help to catch thieves because most of the incidents occur at night.
"This is something that is ongoing and we do as many street checks on people at the wee hours of the night in odd locations to try to determine who's out and about, [but] we still need the public's assistance in paying attention to what's going on in their neighbourhood and calling us," she said.
Turley said metal theft damages property and puts public safety at risk because phone wires that are stripped and left exposed interrupt 911 services.
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