Rising prices lead to more metal theft

Not being criminals ourselves, Houstonist doesn't always stay up on the latest crime trends, so we were a little surprised to hear about the local scrap metal craze. Thieves have begun targeting scrap yards, cemeteries, buildings, rooftops and anywhere else metal is readily available — and it's partly China's fault. According to KHOU, China is taking all the copper and aluminum it can get to make electronics and other goods, so thieves here steal the metal and sell it on the metallic black market.

In the past month, Harris County investigators have looked into 17 cases of metal theft, and burglars have stolen $500,000 in metal locally since the beginning of the year. Among recent pilfered items: copper coils from a rooftop air-conditioner at a north side CVS, scrap from C&D Scrap Metal and bronze vases from a cemetery in Montgomery County. One guy, 31-year-old Johnny Lee Cheek, is accused of stealing more metal than anyone around, including $40,000 in bronze tubes.

The local thefts are part of a national trend in which people have even stolen metal benches, lampposts, trolley wire, highway guard rails and railroad spikes. Officials say the thefts probably won't slow down until the price of scrap metal decreases, and that might not happen for a couple of years. We hope someone's keeping an eye on the Statue of Liberty.