REGION: 4 arrested at North County scrap recyclers
By SARAH GORDON - Staff Writer | ∞
Four employees at two North County scrap metal recycling businesses were arrested Wednesday after they allegedly bought telephone lines from undercover detectives, representatives of a new task force on copper theft announced Thursday.
The arrests marked the first time that area law enforcement officials have gone after scrap recyclers rather than the thieves, officials said. Thefts of copper in all forms have skyrocketed along with the price of copper over the last several years.
Three employees were arrested Wednesday at Ben's Recycling in Oceanside. James Robinson, 53, Frederick Fohl, 58, and Daniel Kwak, 26, were booked on suspicion of criminally receiving metals, a charge that carries a maximum of three years in prison, a district attorney's spokeswoman said.
The other employee, 20-year-old Eduardo Guillen, was arrested at Lee's Iron and Metal in Vista. David Lee said his employee was an honest person responsible for weighing metal.
Three other businesses were visited by undercover detectives, Quality Recycling in Vista, Skyline Recycling in Escondido and Escondido Recycling. No arrests were made at those businesses.
An employee at Ben's Recycling said no one was available to comment on the arrests.
Under state law, scrap metal dealers and employees must not receive any goods they know or have reason to believe had been stolen from a utility. The scrap yards are required to collect the license plate number and driver's license of anyone who brings in scrap metal.
Vista sheriff's Detective Jason Vickery said that employees at Lee's on several occasions had not collected driver's license information, and that everyone arrested in the sting was clearly flouting their responsibility to make sure they were not receiving stolen goods.
In the four-month operation, undercover detectives visited the five recyclers four times, attempting to hawk between 300 and 600 pounds of telephone line segments, Vickery said. The lines consisted of 600 rubber-coated wires bundled and sheathed in vinyl. In that form, most obviously recognizable as telephone wire, the three employees at Ben's agreed to buy, but employees at the four other businesses refused, Vickery said.
On other visits, detectives brought the bundled segments, stripped of their vinyl covers.
Recyclers said the enforcement shift unfairly casts honest businesses as the root of the problem.
"I don't know why we're being portrayed as bad guys; we're a family business that's been around for 50 years," said David Lee, general manager of Lee's recycling in Vista. "You don't last 50 years unless you're a legitimate business."
He and others said they routinely cooperate with law enforcement. In February, he said he called the city of Carlsbad to report that someone was trying to sell backflow valves reported stolen there.
Joe Massey, a representative of the Coalition of Independent Recyclers, said that the wires were not marked as AT&T's, and most scrap recyclers, who process millions of pounds of metal each month, would have had no reason to believe they were stolen.
At Thursday's news conference, an executive director with AT&T, Ignacio de la Torre, said that the company had been hit hard by thefts in recent years. Last year, the utility had 250 lines stolen, about a quarter of those thefts occurring in North County, he said.
Randal Jensen, responsible for maintenance of the lines in the eastern region of North County, said thieves generally strike at night and take about 300 feet, or $1,000 worth of cable. That costs the company about $20,000 to replace because of labor costs, he said.
Summer Stephen, chief of the district attorney's North County branch, said that copper thieves are usually methamphetamine addicts looking for a quick way to get drug money.
While high-quality copper is currently trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange for about $3.60 per pound, scrap metal recyclers pay about $2.60 per pound for copper wire in good condition. Thieves have been known to steal everything with copper in it, from backflow valves to cemetery urns, but the price for scrap copper varies widely. Poor quality brass objects only net about 60 cents a pound at local recyclers.
Copper prices have quadrupled since 2004, and theft of the metal has risen accordingly nationwide
Contact Staff Writer Sarah Gordon at (760) 740-3517 or sgordon@nctimes.com.
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Unmarked cable wrote on Jul 25, 2008 12:32 AM:Sounds like they have a really weak case. I have known Lees since 1980, they are pretty legit. 20 years ago a friend of mine filched some aluminum from his employer, he got nailed because Lees took down his license plate number.
Dang wrote on Jul 25, 2008 5:59 AM:I guess copper cemetary urns are out of the question.
Johny On The Spot wrote on Jul 25, 2008 6:42 AM:This enforcement by proxy is WRONG. They are penalizing and possibly jailing honest businessmen for failing to do the job that the police also failed to do.
I agree with the law requiring scrap dealers to get info on people selling the scrap metal, but to jail someone for NOT getting the info is tantamount to prosecuting the scrap dealer for the crime that the thief did in the first place.
Instead of spending four months on a big sting, the detectives would be much more productive to try and educate the scrap dealers on how to more effectively help the police dept.
You do not illicit cooperation by threat of jail time and arrest. You build goodwill and use education to promote your agenda.
This is pretty heavy handed in my mind of the police to target the businesses instead of the criminals who are the real culprits.
I am sure those scrap dealers are going to be making all kinds of courtesy calls to the police now that they have arrested several of their own.(sarcasm)
Jeff wrote on Jul 25, 2008 7:21 AM:"Joe Massey, a representative of the Coalition of Independent Recyclers, said most scrap recyclers, who process millions of pounds of metal each month, would have had no reason to believe they were stolen."
Interesting, then why did four out of the five recyclers refuse to buy it from undercover detectives?
It sounds like Mr. Lee failed to properly train his employees so they would not break the law. Shame on you Mr. Lee for hanging your "honest employee" out to dry like that, and then blaming the cops.
I'll bet money that all the other recyclers are now going to be much more carefull about what they buy, and who they buy it from.
wheres the outcry wrote on Jul 25, 2008 8:39 AM:of the "get tough on crime" folks? Oh I see, since none of the suspects had a "latino" sounding name, I guess some consideration for the offeders is warranted. What a bunch of criminal molly-coddling pansies....prison for all!
Vista Native wrote on Jul 25, 2008 8:56 AM:My family has know the Lee's for over 30 years. They are a great upstanding family. We all get sloppy at times with our employees and can't stand over their shoulder for every transaction.
esteban wrote on Jul 25, 2008 9:27 AM:Good job to the PD. Its time to let the copper thieves know we are serious about getting them off the streets. They are worse than coke dealers. I feel safer already more than ever. Im tired of having my copper stolen. I hope they spend a long time in jail.
Duh wrote on Jul 25, 2008 9:31 AM:Receiving stolen property is a crime. Copper theft would disappear in a day if scrap dealers were honest.
Worker wrote on Jul 25, 2008 10:15 AM:Let em rot in jail
diane wrote on Jul 25, 2008 11:57 AM:Glad to hear it. Good undercover work! Keep it up... will teach these scrap dealer a good lesson and not be so greedy!
So Cal Native wrote on Jul 25, 2008 12:25 PM:What a waste of taxpayer money. The cops have nothing better to do than go after the dealer? Give me a break! This case will never make to trial!
lazycops wrote on Jul 25, 2008 12:26 PM:Arresting a business for recieving stolen property? Is that whats going on here? Are you serious..? WEAK! How would someone know something is stolen? Have you ever bought something from someone and did a full on background check before you bought it..? Cops are the lazy ones not the business owners. They need to put down the donuts and do the job the taxpayers are paying them for and that is to jail the thieves not the business owners.
itsconvenient wrote on Jul 25, 2008 12:36 PM:what really boggles my mind in all this, is that they've arrested recyclers, yet have no leads on who is actually stealing this stuff. if anything, i'd think law enforcement would want to ascertain some sort of alliance with local recyclers to nab the thieves as their selling the stolen metals. as it is, the boneheads at AT&T (nice job with tracking your inventory), nor local law enforcement can catch any of the thieves who are taking this stuff, and the recyclers could've been a huge asset to solving this problem. instead, many recylers may turn their backs and be defensive to helping anyone with obtaining their losses. short term solution, to a long term problem.
Greg in Oceanside wrote on Jul 25, 2008 1:57 PM:It seems to me that there are way too many low-life bums (who happen to be thieves) in our communities, who are not employed, taking whatever precious metal they can steal. These metal recycling companies are like pawn shops. While pawn shop operators offer a service to legitimate customers who just want to trade a possession for some green backs, they also get thieves come through their doors who are trying to hock their loot. While the pawn shop operators didn't commit the crime of theft, they offer a service to fence stolen goods, and should be held accountable for ensuring their business doesn't become an accessory to a crime. Precious metal recyclers should be treated the same way, and shouldn't serve as a 'fence' for stolen goods.
Thugger wrote on Jul 25, 2008 2:44 PM:Who is determined a thief and who is a legitimate customer? and if the cops knew they took in some metal from a criminal then why did they not catch the criminal? they just decided to let them slide and punish a business that is doing the world a favor and recycling goods. Isn't that a green thing? Maybe they should have cameras in their establishments.. Is every business owner on the planet completely honest? When the government is corrupt and gas prices are getting jacked people are all walking around patting the cops on the head and saying thanks. Somebody forgot to drink their coffee this morning because they are still asleep behind the wheel.
Jeff wrote on Jul 25, 2008 4:46 PM:When I read the article it appeared to me that only the crooked recyclers got in trouble. I don't think legitamate businesses have anything to worry about.
Bill wrote on Jul 25, 2008 4:58 PM:If they would use this tactic on the employers who hire illegals, we wouldn't be in the mess we are in!
Shhhhhhhh wrote on Jul 25, 2008 6:51 PM:What this article does not tell you is that at least seven criminals have been arrested for stealing AT&T phone lines over that last four months in North County. The DA has been hard core on prosecuting them as well. The "coppers" are going after all involved!
face wrote on Jul 25, 2008 6:56 PM:only tweekers steal this stuff. My father
caught one of these scumbugs in his backyard.
The Wizard of Oz wrote on Jul 26, 2008 2:43 PM:Ha ha.... snort....a donut blog about cops,....how original...get a life.
Smart Cops wrote on Jul 28, 2008 11:56 AM:I wish ICE would take the same approach when it comes to illegals! It makes total sense!
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