Pine Bluff officials say progress is being made in a quest to solve the city’s copper theft epidemic.
At a news conference inside the Det. Kevin D. Collins Training Center on Thursday, Police Det. Keith Banks said 46 incidents of copper theft have been reported this year, resulting in an estimated loss of $398,000 worth of product. Police have netted three arrests from the incidents, including two men in connection with a reported residential burglary on July 18. A large amount of copper wires were found.
The thefts have mostly impacted telephone and internet service provider AT&T and its customers, many of whom have complained of slow or interrupted service.
“We take these crimes very seriously,” Banks said. “We will continue to collaborate with AT&T and stakeholders.”
The progress stems from a collaborative effort of AT&T, city officials and police, Pine Bluff Mayor Shirley Washington said. AT&T officials attended the news conference and reminded the public of a $5,000 reward for any information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for copper theft.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Lisa Lake, AT&T’s Arkansas vice president of external affairs, said the communications giant is in the process of issuing a reward to a citizen who reported theft at one of AT&T’s plants. The phone number for AT&T’s asset protection line is (800) 807-4205. Tips can be left anonymously, but some information would need to be left for the information to be eligible for a reward, Lake said.
“These are serious matters that affect public safety and the community,” Lake noted. “It makes it hard for businesses to run, and it also impacts emergency services and law enforcement. It puts a risk to national security.”
Police have not indicated a possible connection between the copper thefts and a crime ring, Banks said.
“A lot of cases are unique in their own way,” he said. “When we arrest someone, we get as much info as we can.”
How much criminals may be making off the sale of stolen copper depends on the price of copper at the time, Police Chief Denise Richardson said.
Richardson asked the public to report any thefts to the PBPD dispatch line at (870) 541-5300 or the PBPD detective office at (870) 730-2090.
This version is updated with the correct identity of the police officer in the background of the photo.