RICHMOND, Calif. – Copper cable thefts are increasing, according to Contra Costa County Supervisor John Gioia, who is holding a rally Tuesday to bring law enforcement and business leaders together to discuss the impact of these thefts on the regional communications infrastructure.
Gioia, along with the police chiefs from Richmond and El Cerrito, and business leaders will meet to discuss the problem and raise awareness about the impact on the economy, business, and security.
The meeting comes after a man’s body was discovered in a PG&E vault on Aug. 20. Investigators say it appears he was electrocuted during an attempted theft of copper cable.
Area businesses say phone and internet outages are frequent due to wire thefts.
Pinole also had an incident in June, when 911 calls in that city, as well as Hercules and San Pablo, were disrupted due to copper wire thefts. Two people were arrested in connection to that incident.