Copper wire thefts are frustrating utilities, home builders and police in Alberta

An increase in copper thefts in Alberta is leaving law enforcement agencies and those affected by the crimes frustrated and looking for solutions.

According to telecommunications company Telus, it has seen a 58 per cent increase this year over last year in terms of copper thefts impacting its operations in Alberta. In Edmonton, the company said thefts have increased 238 per cent.

“It's not just something that happens here in Edmonton, Alberta or Canada,” explains Brian Lakey, the vice president of reliability for Telus' Service Reliability Center of Excellence. He is also co-chair of the Canadian Telecom Resiliency Work Group. “The reason this happens is because copper is a valuable commodity. This is something that is happening worldwide.

“According to the Canadian Telecom Association, it has grown about 200 per cent nationally.”

Bell Canada says it has experienced more than 1,500 security incidents involving its network since January 2022. with copper theft responsible for 87 percent of incidents.

Gary Hoeft is the general manager of Cantiro Homes in Edmonton and said the homebuilding industry has always faced this problem, but noted that in recent years it has “become a common problem.”

He said when a home construction crew is working to get a home's foundation in place, most developers will leave a large string of copper wire in an underground box. The coil on the ground is exposed so that thieves can see it, cut it, put it over their shoulder and run away with it.

“We need to increase our contingency budgets,” he said, noting that at many homes it could cost more than a thousand dollars to replace the line and hundreds of dollars more to pay a utility company involved in the process. involved.

Lakey said when it comes to Telus' infrastructure, thieves use a number of methods to target the product.

“In some cases it is the air fiber. We've seen it where they cut it up from above, attach it to a truck and just drive down the road and pull it off,” he explained. “That causes a lot of damage, not only to our infrastructure.

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“They also pull the cable out of the ground or through manholes.”

This summer, Telus said the theft of copper wire from a Calgary neighborhood resulted in significant outages to home phone, TV and internet service.

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“It's not so much about cost,” Lakey noted. “It's really about public safety, that's the real issue. Because when this happens, it leads to people not being able to call the emergency services, whether it is the police, fire brigade or ambulance. And they can't contact each other.

“We are investing and getting it fixed as quickly as possible and we are continually investing to protect and improve our infrastructure, but the fundamental problem is really public safety.”

Lakey said Telus has been in discussions with all different levels of government about possible solutions.

He said Telus would like to see stricter penalties as a deterrent because of the public safety impact of the thefts.

“It needs to be recategorised,” he said of the theft of copper wires.

Cpl. Troy Savinkoff, a public information officer with the RCMP in Alberta, acknowledged the frustration.

“Copper wire (theft) is very difficult to enforce and prosecute,” he explained. He said one of the major roadblocks to prosecuting the crimes is that when search warrants are executed to disrupt groups involved in theft, it is easier to trace the origin of some stolen property than others, and copper wire can do that be a challenge.

“We know as police officers that this piece of copper we're seeing is largely stolen — but if you can't prove it, you can't file those charges,” Savinkoff said.

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Last month, the RCMP said it is “launching a community initiative in response to concerns about the ongoing theft of copper wires in eastern Alberta.”

In a news release, the law enforcement agency said it is working with stakeholders on solutions and recommends that people or businesses reduce the risk of having their copper wire stolen.

Some of these suggestions include installing an alarm system with a camera that can be monitored remotely so that commercial properties are well lit and precious metals are laser engraved so that they are easier to identify if they are stolen.

Savinkoff noted that the RCMP has been able to successfully interrupt the theft of copper wire from workplaces a number of times this year, when a company was able to remotely access security footage and call police before the thieves escaped.

While new solutions are explored, police and those working in the sectors hardest hit by the thefts say people reporting suspicious activity remain helpful.

Lakey noted that thieves are beginning to use more sophisticated approaches in an effort not to appear suspicious when stealing copper from locations.

“They're starting to wear the yellow jackets (that employees might wear) … to give the impression that they're real utilities,” he said.

Lakey said that at least when it comes to Telus, a sign that something is wrong would be if someone appears to be taking copper wire from a location and there isn't an officially designated work truck nearby.

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