3rd Copper Theft Reported From A Molino Tower

December 3, 2010

For the second time in just over two months, copper wiring was stripped from a county-ownned radio tower in Molino.

The theft was discovered Thursday at the communications tower, which is located behind the Escambia County Health Department on Highway 29.  Each time, the thief removed copper wiring that is part of the tower’s grounding equipment. Radio communications using the tower were not interrupted.

In October, a technician for CES Team One Communications, the company that maintains the radio tower for Escambia County, discovered items worth about $3,450 missing from the tower. That theft occurred sometime between September 1 and October 11.

On November 22, technicians discovered hundreds of dollars in copper grounding wire missing from the privately owned communications tower adjacent to the Molino Ballpark on Crabtree Church Road.  The wiring was part of that tower’s electrical grounding system. There were no reports that any of the services on the tower were disrupted.  At least one cellular telephone company serves the Molino area from the tower.

Anyone with information on the thefts is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9620 or Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.

Pictured above and below: Copper wiring was discovered missing from this cellular telephone tower on Crabtree Church Road earlier this month. Pictured inset: Wiring was discovered missing from this county owned communications tower in October 11 and again on December 2. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.

Comments

8 Responses to “3rd Copper Theft Reported From A Molino Tower”

  1. David Huie Green on December 5th, 2010 9:09 am

    REGARDING:
    “she asked me what proof I had!!!!!! Why is proof our problem? How much of your job are we supposed to do?”

    Possible responses:
    “None, I dreamed it up.” Response, ignore.
    “I saw them do it.” Response, put somebody on it.
    “I heard them say it..” Response, put somebody on it.
    “I heard somebody say she heard somebody say she heard they were going to do it.” Response, ignore.

    They may not have been looking for proof that would stand up in court but proof which would justify diveriting officers from other leads.

    David for proper responses

  2. Kevin on December 5th, 2010 8:33 am

    I still believe that these people should be required to provide some form of proof as to where and how they obtained these metals before the scrap companies can pay them. It would stop most of the stealing. I have had my welding leads stolen twice, and jumper cables more times than I care to remember!

  3. OldMarine on December 4th, 2010 10:53 pm

    Sorry posted without seeing the Pics. ” Who will throw the First Stone ” LOL

    God Bless you All

  4. OldMarine on December 4th, 2010 10:51 pm

    I have Four DLC Covert II Assassin Cameras watching my Hunting land for 2 years now , and have caught my Neighbors twice. I like this Cam.

    They hide easy , even in hollowed out logs , etc.

    By now we would know who took the wire

  5. Nope I won't tell on December 4th, 2010 12:28 pm

    Wellllllllll !
    I called one time to crime stoppers with information that could have broken up a ring of night time burglaries and she asked me what proof I had!!!!!! Why is proof our problem? How much of your job are we supposed to do?
    I have heard something about a secret killing someone is planning and why, but I don’t have proof? Why should I bother? It is my civic duty and of course
    I want to save some guys life, but what do I have to know to make some one give a crap? I thought a tip was just that A TIP !
    I called the sheriffs office one time and the guy on the phone was mean and
    rude to me. Why should I put up with that? They don’t want information!
    Maybe they say they do but that’s just words and actions speak louder than words.
    I have a good suspicion about the wire and the burning of it, just a suspicion, something that should be easily checked out, but why bother to sign seal and deliver something with MY name on it for someone to just leak back to the criminals and then probably it will be my body that is burned in some woods somewhere and never discovered.
    GET YOUR OWN PROOF SHERIFF because I know that the people who work
    for you don’t want it.

  6. JW on December 4th, 2010 7:21 am

    these towers, and anything else with this amount of copper, is just going to have to be checked daily. Not sure what kind of trap that could be set for these thieves.

  7. shae on December 3rd, 2010 1:04 pm

    I know cameras are a lot of money, but in the long run, so is thousands of dollars worth of copper wiring. Seems would be a worthy investment considering.

  8. YELLER HAMMER on December 3rd, 2010 12:38 pm

    Just put a deer camera in a hidden location or security video and you can catch these thugs and prosucute all of the thefts.