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Eugene police, recyclers curb metal theft; Lumen reports about $1.2 million in losses since Feb 2024
Summary
Eugene Police Department said focused outreach to metal recyclers and use of existing statutes have reduced copper-wire thefts; Lumen reported roughly $1.2 million in repair and replacement costs from February 2024 through the present period discussed at the April 23 council work session.
Jacob Burke, investigations captain for the Eugene Police Department, told the council on April 23 that recent, prioritized contact with local metal recyclers and enforcement actions have reduced metal-theft incidents in Eugene.
Burke told the council that copper and other nonferrous metals have been the primary targets; thieves often remove wiring from utility boxes and other infrastructure, he said, and sell metals to recyclers for quick cash. Burke said the most significant impacts include lengthy service disruptions, public-safety hazards and high repair costs. He cited a loss estimate from Lumen of about $1,200,000 in repairs and service restoration costs from February 2024 to the present.
Burke outlined statutes used in investigations, including Chapter 164 (theft), criminal mischief in the first degree for tampering with utilities, and ORS 165.117, which regulates metal recyclers by prohibiting cash payments to private individuals and requiring recordkeeping of seller identification and metal descriptions. He said detectives found widespread misunderstanding of those recycler obligations and have been conducting regular visits and outreach to local recyclers to improve compliance.
Burke said those visits, plus improved compliance and at least one arrest of a prolific alleged offender, have coincided with a reported drop in thefts, and Lumen representatives told detectives they have observed fewer incidents over the most recent month. Burke said local recyclers have generally cooperated with police and now decline cash purchases from individuals when statutory requirements are not met.
Councilors praised the effort; Councilor Emily Groves asked the department to continue monitoring trends and suggested including metal-theft metrics in future reports. Burke said detectives plan ongoing visits and regular contacts with recycler businesses and will continue to prosecute where evidence permits.
No ordinance or code change was proposed at the meeting; staff described using existing statutes and regulatory compliance measures to reduce the economic incentive for theft by making it harder to sell stolen metal quickly.
