Collaborative Effort Targets Rising Copper, Aluminum Thefts
Recycler's Tracking Agreement Heads Off Ordinance
A recent meeting of Washington County sheriff's investigators, City Hall offi cials and owners of a Hugo recycling company appears to have headed off the need for an ordinance to combat local trading in stolen copper and aluminum.
Due largely to skyrocketing prices for the metals, the Washington County Sheriff's Offi ce has reported a "marked increase" in stolen copper and aluminum in Hugo, especially from residential construction sites, according to an issue summary distributed at the City Council's October 16 meeting.
Stolen aluminum and copper - including copper tubing, electrical wire and aluminum concrete forms - appears to have been traded at the Hugobased National Recycling Inc., the summary added.
According to recently reported figures, trading in stolen copper has become more attractive to criminals as the price has doubled to about $2.50 per pound over the last year.
In one July bust near Forest Lake, for example, investigators recovered more than one-and-ahalf tons of stolen commercialgrade copper wire and tools as part of a "stash" worth more than $30,000, according to one report.
In some cases, the stolen metal is sold at recycling centers to help fuel methamphetamine traffi cking, police have said.
Washington County sheriff's offi cials had been considering asking the council to adopt an ordinance requiring local metals recyclers to track incoming copper and aluminum in the same way Minnesota pawnshops are required to do by state law.
However, an October 1 meeting of NRI owners Rick and Melissa Mark; sheriff's Sgt. of Investigations Bradley Marquardt and Investigator Bill Harrell; and Community Development Director Bryan Bear and City Administrator Mike Ericson yielded better-than-expected results, Marquardt told the council.
In an October 6 letter requesting the meeting, Marquardt had written to the Marks, "I look forward to learning about the obstacles you face when attempting to reduce your likelihood of accepting stolen property. I look forward to working in partnership with you and the city of Hugo to make NRI a business which criminals avoid."
At the meeting, the Marks agreed to document the identity of each customer with a valid driver's license and signed receipt, and to record customers' vehicle license plate numbers, along with the amount and type of metals they brought in, Marquardt said.
He added that the Marks will also establish a computerized customer and material database, keep a daily customer log and "call the Sheriff's Office if anybody comes in and just doesn't seem right."
The company's new system - parts of which were already in place - was expected to be fully functional by October 2 , Marquardt said.
"The meeting went well, and they were willing to cooperate with us," Marquardt said of the Marks. "Rick told me that this was a long-overdue process."
Added Ericson, "It was an eye-opening meeting for all of us." Council Member Chuck Haas, meanwhile, thanked Ericson, Marquardt and Harrell, and the Marks for ironing out a framework for attacking the problem without turning to City Hall for regulation.
"I'm really glad we don't have to do that because of the steps taken on this already by NRI, the Washington County Sheriff's Offi ce and the city of Hugo," Haas said.