In a massive downtown raid, members of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Heavy Metal Task Force arrested 82 people and seized 2,000 pounds of stolen copper wire, city leaders announced Tuesday.
Formed earlier this year, the Heavy Metal Task Force, which includes members of the city’s Bureau of Street Lighting, has been working to combat the sharp increase of copper wire thefts and scrap metal crimes, especially in areas like downtown L.A., Boyle Heights, El Sereno and Lincoln Heights.
“The city of Los Angeles is no longer your ATM machine,” Councilman Kevin de León said at a Tuesday press conference.
De León and Councilwoman Traci Parks worked to form the task force after many streets in their districts, including the recently renovated 6th Street Bridge, went dark as a result of copper thieves.
“Wire theft is not a victimless crime,” Parks said at the presser.
According to officials, the city has spent tens of millions of dollars on repairing damage caused by these thieves, many of whom use handsaws to tear through the metal panels housing the copper wire.
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Copper wire and scrap metal recovered by LAPD’s Heavy Metal Task Force on July 30, 2024. (Office of Kevin de Leon) -
L.A. city officials and members of LAPD’s Heavy Metal Task Force at a press conference on July 30, 2024. (KTLA) -
L.A. city officials and members of LAPD’s Heavy Metal Task Force at a press conference on July 30, 2024. (KTLA) -
Copper wire and scrap metal recovered by LAPD’s Heavy Metal Task Force on July 30, 2024. (Office of Kevin de Leon) -
Copper wire and scrap metal recovered by LAPD’s Heavy Metal Task Force on July 30, 2024. (Office of Kevin de Leon) -
Copper wire and scrap metal recovered by LAPD’s Heavy Metal Task Force on July 30, 2024. (KTLA) -
Copper wire and scrap metal recovered by LAPD’s Heavy Metal Task Force on July 30, 2024. (KTLA) -
Copper wire and scrap metal recovered by LAPD’s Heavy Metal Task Force on July 30, 2024. (KTLA) -
Copper wire and scrap metal recovered by LAPD’s Heavy Metal Task Force on July 30, 2024. (KTLA) -
Copper wire and scrap metal recovered by LAPD’s Heavy Metal Task Force on July 30, 2024. (KTLA) -
L.A.’s 6th Street Bridge seen without working streetlights due to copper theft. (KTLA) -
A cut metal grate seen after thieves stole copper wiring housed inside. (KTLA)
In January, De León said that in his district alone, some 3,700 streetlights were out.
The problem, officials say, is not simply the cost of repairs, but that leaving neighborhoods and parks in the dark is a threat to the public.
“It impacts the most vulnerable communities in the city of L.A., Black and brown neighborhoods,” he said Tuesday. “It impacts youth at parks, senior citizens, singles mothers at parks who get out of town by sundown because they’re in fear for their life when they have to walk home.”
L.A. is not alone in dealing with these types of crimes. In Pasadena, officials are working to make it harder for crooks to access these metals, which are often inside unique and historic architecture throughout the city.
The city’s streetlights are a major target for thieves.
“Some of these currents are up to 3,000 volts, which could be lethal,” Pasadena Public Works Commissioner Garrett Crawford told KTLA. “They leave a dangerous condition out in the public right of way, and we need a remedy right away.”
Pasadena is even offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the capture and conviction of these metal thieves.
“We’ve all had enough,” Parks said. “We’re cracking down and people will, in fact, be held accountable for their conduct.”
No information about the identities of those arrested was provided.