News and Success Stories

Category: Metal Theft

Florida police arrest suspect for stealing scaffolding from side of business

“A victim stated a large amount of rebar and 19 pieces of scaffolding were taken from the side of a business. An employee for the business recalled seeing a silver Nissan pickup truck exiting the north end of the business parking lot and the pickup had scaffolding frames in the bed of the truck. From two incidents, about 2,500 pounds of rebar valued at $1,500 and 38 scaffolding frames with a value of $5,700 were missing. The total value of all the stolen items was $7,200. During my investigation, I used LeadsOnline to learn of a suspect who drives a silver Nissan pickup truck, had done a lot of scrapping, including a large amount of rebar and metal. While speaking with the subject he admitted to taking rebar he saw by a dumpster. He denied taking any other metal, including scaffolding frames. He pointed out an area within a few feet of the dumpster and claimed this was where he found the rebar. I showed him examples of the scaffolding that was taken, and he denied taking any items that looked like it. Using LeadsOnline I discovered there were 5 specific transactions that involved a large amount of rebar and/ or scaffolding frames. I saw clear photos of scaffolding, exactly like the scaffolding I showed the subject earlier in the day but he denied, in the back of the pickup truck. The subject was arrested and was transported to the police station for an interview. During an interview post-Miranda, he admitted to taking the metal frames which were not by the dumpster. He freely admitted to two instances of going to the business for items, but when he was shown pictures of five different truckloads of rebar he admitted it was possible he got items from the business on five different occasions. He was charged with two violations, one charge for each case number/affidavit, two counts of grand theft valued at $300 or more but less than $5,000.”

Det. Richard Giaccone
Port St. Lucie Police Department
Florida

Suspect arrested for scrapping stolen metal outside of sheriff’s jurisdiction

“I located a suspect who was scrapping large amounts of stolen metal, over a couple months, outside of my jurisdiction. After some research, I was able to identify the items as two distinct parts for a train, which were manufactured in our area. After contacting the manufacturing business it was determined that over $30,000 worth of product was stolen. I was able to match up the weight of the stolen product with the weight of the product scrapped at two separate scrap yards by our suspect. This was confirmed by the photos from LeadsOnline and the scrap yards. The same subject also sold various other items, which were retrieved, and I located the business where the items were stolen from. Once the suspect was confronted with the LeadsOnline photos of her scrapping the items she gave a complete confession to the felony theft and a separate burglary.”

Det. Nathan Moravec
Kane County Sheriff’s Office
Illinois

LeadsOnline identifies Ohio suspect selling stolen scrap metal

“I was assigned a theft case involving approximately $4,500 in stolen aluminum coils and chain link fencing. Using LeadsOnline, I searched a possible suspect name provided by the victim. Within a few seconds, I had a hit on the suspect that showed he had recently scrapped a large amount of aluminum and galvanized steel at a local scrap yard. I followed up at the scrap yard which provided photos of the suspect and the items that he scrapped. The items were positively identified by the victim. Charges are pending in this case.”

Det. Mike Scholles
Tallmadge Police Department
Ohio

Serial burglar in Arizona taken off the streets with help of LeadsOnline

“I assisted in an investigation regarding a stolen vehicle where the victim knew the suspect. Details about how the vehicle was stolen were sketchy at first, and it was not clear as to whether the suspect had the legal authority to drive the vehicle. During the initial follow up, we learned the suspect was wanted out of the Arizona Department of Corrections for a parole violation. The suspect was a former employee at a scrap yard and frequently took items to various recycling yards in the area from thefts he committed. Since the suspect was wanted for questioning in a stolen vehicle case, was the subject of an outstanding warrant, and was more than likely involved in several theft/burglary cases, it became a high priority to track this suspect down. Using LeadsOnline, I learned valuable information about his pattern of selling. I made contact with the manager of a scrap yard he frequented and informed him of the investigation. They agreed to call me when the suspect showed up. Within two hours my phone was ringing and the suspect had arrived at the yard. I took the suspect into custody as he left, recovered the stolen vehicle, eliminated the warrant and found he had just committed multiple burglaries of vacant residents. Without the information from LeadsOnline, this individual who had no permanent address, would not have been located and apprehended. A highly active thief is now back in prison serving out his sentence and is also up on new charges thanks to LeadsOnline. Thank you for all you do.”

Officer Kris Bertz
Phoenix Police Department
Arizona

Suspect confessed to stealing vehicle and scrap metal in Boone County

“A local business in Boone County, Kentucky was burglarized and several scrap metal items and a vehicle were stolen. The crime was reported and the next day we searched LeadsOnline and the results tracked back to one of our suspects. The suspect confessed to the burglary, theft of the vehicle, and told us who the accomplice was. LeadsOnline was essential to the unfolding of this investigation, the recovery of property, and the future successful prosecution of multiple suspects.”

Deputy Sheriff Adam Schepis
Boone County Sheriff’s Office
Kentucky

Unknown scrap thief identified with search capabilities of LeadsOnline

“LeadsOnline is an invaluable tool! We were getting hit with scrap metal thefts at a particular business here in Greenfield. I placed a camera in the area and captured photos of the suspect stealing the metal. I was only able to capture a partial license plate of 459. I entered the partial plate and the words stainless steel into the scrap search fields of LeadsOnline. I received a hit on the search and after reviewing the photos posted by the scrap yard, I identified my suspect. Thanks to LeadsOnline we now have another thief off the streets.”

Sgt. Jerald Fortner
Greenfield Police Department
Indiana

Police arrest home health worker who preys on elderly

“I was able to recover close to $20,000 worth of stolen heirloom jewelry that was sold to pawn shops several cities away by a home health care worker who was preying on elderly women.”

Det. B. Richardson
Tarboro Police Department
North Carolina

Arkansas Police benefit from LeadsOnline statewide system for solving crimes

“I recently conducted a burglary and theft investigation and, due to LeadsOnline, I was able to make an arrest and also obtained a confession from the suspect. The suspect had broken into an elderly man’s residence and stolen well over $3,000 worth of property from the residence including surround systems, tools, a handmade bbq grill with wheels, 10-foot trailer, washing machine and dryer, Canon digital camera, etc. Through the course of the investigation, we developed an additional suspect, and his driver’s license number was checked through scrap yard and pawnshops. It was discovered that he sold several of the stolen items in Memphis, TN. The suspect had also sold property to the scrapyard in Osceola, AR, which was also stolen from the residence. Without the use of leadsonline.com, I don’t believe I would have been able to make an arrest and recover any property.”

Det.Corporal Chris Ellis
Osceola Police Department
Arkansas

San Antonio PD catches another copper thief with LeadsOnline

“Using the scrap yard search on LeadsOnline, I was able to locate and positively identify an active burglar who has been hitting the industrial businesses in our jurisdiction. The burglar was breaking into the businesses and stealing copper. Although I was not able to recover the copper stolen in the burglaries, I was able to file on the burglar. The suspect has a lengthy criminal record including multiple burglary cases. LeadsOnline provided photos of the burglar which showed him wearing the same clothing and unique backpack he was wearing when he committed the burglary. FYI this isn’t the first time I have been able to catch copper thieves using LeadsOnline. Thank you for your help!”

Det. Alejandro Martinez
San Antonio Police Department
Texas

Ohio Police crack metal theft case targeting a local egg farm

“Better late than never. A while ago, the Licking County Sheriff’s Office conducted an investigation into a large amount of metal being stolen from an egg farm located in Croton, Ohio. During this time, the egg farm was constructing a new building, which they purchased all the material from a company overseas. As the investigation persisted, LeadsOnline was used to search for whoever was stealing the metal, but nothing was found locally. A month later, two individuals were found on the property of the egg farm, and I questioned them about the theft of the metal. During this interview, I discovered there was a large theft ring, and most of the thefts were being committed at the egg farm. By checking all the names through LeadsOnline, I was able to locate eight individuals who were selling the stolen metal to scrap yards in Columbus. All individuals were investigated and eventually arrested for the theft of metal. The total loss for the egg farm was over $1,000,000.”

Det. Sgt. Jay Cook
Licking County Sheriff’s Office
Ohio

Suspect arrested for scrapping and selling stolen property across state lines

“I recently conducted a burglary and theft investigation and because of LeadsOnline, I was able to make an arrest and obtain a confession from the suspect. The suspect had broken into an elderly man’s residence and stolen well over $3,000 worth of property including a surround systems, tools, a handmade barbeque grill with wheels, a 10-foot trailer, washing machine and dryer, Canon digital camera, etc… Through the course of the investigation, a potential suspect was developed, and his driver’s license number was checked through the system. It was discovered he pawned several of the stolen items in Memphis, Tennessee. Morris also sold property to a scrap yard in Osceola that was also stolen from the residence. Without the use of LeadsOnline, I don’t believe I would have been able to make an arrest or recover any property. ”

Det. Corporal Chris Ellis
Osceola Police Department
Arkansas

California PD discover ring of copper thieves while using the LeadsOnline free trial

“My agency gained access to LeadsOnline using the 30-day free trial. Within two hours of having an open LeadsOnline account, our detectives were able to identify a ring of copper thieves that have been plaguing a local business for months. The very next morning we had all four in our custody and located several hundred pounds of stolen copper. We currently have pending charges on three of the subjects.”

Sgt. Troy Adams
Belmont Police Department
California

LeadsOnline helps Houston PD crack down on local business’ employee theft

“We received a phone call from the president of a company regarding possible employee theft. She informed me that she suspected that some of her employees were stealing copper cable and selling it as scrap, and she did not know what to do. A few weeks later, the complainant called again stating that 14,000 feet of network cable had been discovered missing, and she suspected that it was her employees. The complainant had filed a theft report with the Harris County Sheriff’s Department. I requested that she send me a list of all her employees that have access to the material, and she sent a list of 24 names and drivers license numbers. I ran the names and driver license number on LeadsOnline, and found that between January 1, 2014 and October 15, 2014, eight employees sold over 9,000 pounds of copper cable to area scrap metal businesses. I filed charges on all eight employees and made arrangements to arrest them at work. Since the investigation was started, two of the individuals had left the company. We took the six individuals into custody at the work place. The arrest sent out a very loud and clear message to the rest of the employees that stealing from the company was not tolerated. The total amount of the loss by the company was estimated at over $150,000 dollars.”

Officer Oscar Gamez
Houston Police Department
Texas

North Carolina detective locates stolen copper and clears the case two days after the crime

“Rockstar status in the scrap yard!! Gotta love finding copper, tools of the trade, and clearing cases within two days of the crime. LeadsOnline rocks!”

Det. Kristy Cox
Oak Island Police Department
North Carolina

Houston police arrest suspects for scrapping large amounts of stolen copper wire

“I was called out to a scene by a patrol officer who had a large amount of wire stolen from a 30-acre yard that inventoried pipe and wiring. The wire was distinctive because it was encased in an orange, ribbed insulation. Within that insulation was a steel sheathing, then three large wires and one small wire inside. I followed the drag marks on the ground to a cut in the fenced in the perimeter. The scene also showed a roll of duct tape near the wooden spool that the wire was stolen from and pieces of raveled duct tape along the drag marks on the ground. I noted the address of the apartment complex just outside the cut fence and ran the address of the apartment complex through LeadsOnline. I found the suspect because he sold the exact material to a scrap yard and used an ID that had an address of that apartment complex. I was able to recover $6,000 worth of wire at the scrap yard and charge him for third degree aggregate theft for two thefts that occurred at the same location exactly one month apart. Without LeadsOnline there would not have been any leads in this case, and the thieves would have gotten away with over $66,000 worth of copper from the same complainant in a one month period.”

Sr. Ofc. Kyle Brauner
Houston Police Department
Texas

Houston PD obtains confessions after using LeadsOnline

“In April, aluminum grates were stolen from around downtown Houston. The grates were placed around the trees near the sidewalk. I obtained pictures of the grates from the victim. I sent a theft alert out to the scrap metal industry at the end of April looking for the grates. A few days later, I asked Officer Cohn to look for the grates on LeadsOnline. Officer Cohn located the grates sold to a local scrap yard within an hour. We tracked the grates to the final destination and were able to recover 6 grates the same day. Two suspects have been identified, confessions were obtained and charges will be filed.”

Sgt. Jesse Fite
Houston Police Department
Texas

Scrapyard search proves to be powerful and useful tool

“As all of the Investigators know, Scrapyard Search is a very powerful and useful tool. This year I had a very interesting case where a subject was breaking into cell tower sites and then accessing the locked metal cabinets that contained the cell tower site battery back-ups. Each carrier has its own locked cabinet containing their own back-up batteries. This subject would access the cabinets and disconnect and take the batteries getting between 6-18 batteries at each site. (Battery 200 lbs. and $800.00 each) Also leaving the cell tower site with no back-up or 911, if power is lost. The subject would then go to an area scrapyard with the batteries, posing as a cell company employee, with forged paperwork and sell the batteries as scrap. This subject was entering cell sites in several states and taking and scrapping batteries. This subject did this in my jurisdiction several times and later exited the state. A month later, he re-entered the state and started scrapping the back-up batteries again and that’s when I caught him at a local scrapyard with stolen batteries and later he was charged with the thefts. This would not have been accomplished without the scrapyard search and these cell companies would still have their cell towers at risk. Thanks, LeadsOnline.”

Det. J. Desizlets
North Little Rock Police Department
Arkansas

Officer shows great dedication to law enforcement

“In April, Officer Brauner was researching scrap sales on LeadsOnline and discovered the sale of new copper bus bars. Officer Brauner’s investigation revealed the theft of over $30,000.00 worth of material stolen from the complainant. The complainant said in a letter they never suspected the material was being stolen and the process was extremely quick and efficient. Officer Brauner’s investigation resulted in the arrest of two suspects and the recovery of $1214.72 worth of material. I would like to commend Officer K.B Brauner for his hard work and dedication to the citizens of Houston, Harris County, Texas.”

Sgt. Jesse Fite
Houston Police Department
Texas

Suspect who scrapped 2.5 million dollars in brass arrested and charged with the help of LeadsOnline

“During an arbitrary search for brass being scrapped in the Houston area, I located a load of brass pumps. I ran a complete scrap history of the person and learned he had scrapped the same material approximately 150 times over the past year. I located the owner of the material which was a company that manufactured the product. I learned the individual worked for the company. The total monetary loss of the product was estimated to be approximately 2.5 million. The individual was subsequently arrested and charged.”

Officer Audie Cohn
Houston Police Department
Texas

Using LeadsOnline, detective was able to recover $50,000 in utility property sold and up for auction on eBay

“We were investigating a half dozen burglaries to utility company substations where the suspects stole a large number of power tools and copper wire. Using LeadsOnline, we were able to locate a large number of the stolen items being sold on eBay. LeadsOnline helped us identify the suspects’ eBay accounts as well as complete an inventory of stolen items that had already been sold on eBay and ones that were still up for auction. With the assistance of LeadsOnline, we were able to arrest both subjects and they are now looking at multiple felonies; and we recovered almost $50,000 in utility property! Thanks LeadsOnline!”

Det. Chris Loudon
Lisle Police Department
Illinois

Tracking transactions just a few hours after the theft can speed up your case solving process

“Earlier this year, an individual reported that $3150 of steel support beams were stolen from a business. According to LeadsOnline the suspect sold all the beams within a few hours of the theft at a local recycling business. Pictures of the suspect with the unique beams were obtained. The beams were all recovered and the suspect was charged.”

Sgt. Ted Conlon
Gwinnett County Police Department
Georgia

Employee who steals from his employer is caught with the help of LeadsOnline

“Last year, the Gwinnett Metal Theft Unit was reviewing photos from scrap sales the previous day. One transaction showed a sale of 729 lbs. of spooled copper wire. Further investigation showed six previous transactions for approximately the same amount. The employer of the person selling the copper was contacted and confirmed all the copper had been stolen from the company’s warehouse. The employee confessed to using the company truck to steal the copper. The company lost $20,000 but was able to recover approximately 500 lbs. of the copper. ”

Sgt. Ted Conlon
Gwinnett County Police Department
Georgia

Caught red handed with evidence found on LeadsOnline

“Using LeadsOnline I was able to collect a photograph showing two of my suspects in a breaking and entering case driving into a scrap yard. The photo showed the stolen items in the back of their pickup. When confronted with the photograph and statements provided by the scrap yard employees, both suspects confessed and I closed my case.”

Det. Brian Finney
Camden Police Department
Arkansas

Jacksonville detective consistently and successfully uses LeadsOnline not only to search for property but also to locate suspects

“I attended the LeadsOnline metal theft training in Little Rock this summer. Travis and Lindsay did a great job instructing! Earlier this year I responded to a Commercial burglary at a business in Jacksonville Arkansas. There was a total of $5,500 in metal and tools stolen. I conducted a search on LeadsOnline and noticed a power washer was sold at a business in North Little Rock. The power washer was the same brand that the business reported stolen. I then searched the subject that sold the power washer and noticed she also scrapped hundreds of pounds of stainless steel to a scrap yard in Bryant. I searched the license plate number she used in the scrap yards and was able to locate the registered owner of the license plate and noticed he has scrapped items in the same vehicle as well. I compared the vehicle on LeadsOnline in the scrap yards to the vehicle on video surveillance and was able to get a match. I was able to arrest 2 subjects with commercial burglary felony and felony theft of property, thanks to LeadsOnline. I use LeadsOnline not only to search for property but to locate suspects as well. Thank you! ”

Det. Daniel Sipes
Jacksonville Police Department
Arkansas