Police raids target metal ‘thieves’
You may have been hearing about this story in the press already, and its quite shocking how these thieves have been getting away with stealing metal, and at sentimental valur too for so long.
The £3,500 ornament, which was stolen from a residential back garden, was recovered along with a bronze statue of Christ, around 150 memorial plaques taken from churches and crematoriums, copper cabling and £20,000 in cash.
Acting Inspector James Coomber, the operation coordinator, said: “This represents a significant find in our ongoing efforts to target metal theft.
“The majority of scrap metal dealers who are legitimate support our targeting of those acting outside of the law. Those contributing to the thriving illegal trade can expect regular operations to search, detect and arrest those profiting from it.”
Four separate operations focusing on the illegal metal trade have been carried out by the Met in the past eight months with almost 500 scrap metal businesses inspected and searched.
