This story was originally published on MyNorthwest.com.
Copper thieves are increasingly disrupting transit and critical infrastructure across the Pacific Northwest, prompting calls from top officials for tougher prosecutions and new regulations targeting scrap metal sales.
Sound Transit CEO Dow Constantine said this week he plans to press King County prosecutors to take a harder line against suspects accused of stealing copper wire, after repeated thefts snarled light rail service.
Speaking at a board meeting, Constantine said he will meet with prosecutors to urge more aggressive action as the agency grapples with mounting repair costs and service interruptions.
“I look forward to briefing the board in greater depth about our work to address copper wire theft, and I want to note that I’ve scheduled a meeting with the King County prosecutor’s office,” Constantine said during a Thursday board of directors meeting. “The prosecutor has been working over the course of more than a year on this issue, and we will be discussing the challenges and how we can continue to partner together.”
On the day of the Seattle Seahawks Super Bowl Victory Parade in Seattle, copper thieves shut down one light rail line for three hours, stranding riders during one of the city’s largest public celebrations in recent years.
More recently, the newly opened light rail extension between Angle Lake and Federal Way was forced to close for repairs. Sound Transit said the line experienced repeated “unanticipated voltage fluctuations,” at least partially linked to copper wire theft. The agency said the thefts damaged railway equipment and disrupted service, and that crews will examine other potential causes while making necessary repairs.
Rising metal prices fuel surge in copper thefts
Prosecutors said the problem extends far beyond transit.
Gary Ernsdorff, a senior deputy with the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, recently told KIRO Newsradio rising metal prices have fueled a surge in copper theft targeting communication lines and other infrastructure.
“Thieves are opportunistic, and as conditions change, as the economy changes, they look for different opportunities,” Ernsdorff said. “One of the things we’ve seen recently is a rise in copper prices … so the thieves are looking for an opportunity to cash in on this.”
Ernsdorff said offenders often cut large spans of communication wire from utility poles, sometimes as much as a half mile at a time, to strip out the copper inside. The result can leave entire neighborhoods without critical services.
Although thieves may net only a few thousand dollars from stolen metal, utilities can face hundreds of thousands of dollars in repair costs and weeks-long outages, he said.
Lawmakers eye scrap yard regulations
The shift to copper comes after lawmakers and prosecutors successfully targeted another once-rampant crime.
“We were very successful in some legislation a couple of years ago that has dramatically reduced, almost eliminated, the catalytic converter theft problem,” Ernsdorff said. “These are the opportunistic thieves that then look for a new target, and the new target is copper wire.”
In Olympia, lawmakers are now considering new rules for scrap yards that buy copper wire. One proposal would require recyclers to upload photos of purchased wire into a searchable database; a move prosecutors say would help investigators track stolen materials and deter illegal sales.
WA attorney general: ‘We’d be willing to assist’
Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown has also weighed in on the issue, signaling support for efforts to curb the growing thefts.
“It’s certainly a serious issue, not only for here in King County, but broader. Copper wire theft is something that’s been happening for years, and it can totally disrupt the transportation system and all sorts of things,” Brown told KIRO Newsradio. “We don’t have original criminal jurisdiction, but we’d be willing to assist local law enforcement and prosecutors’ offices if they need our help, because I know that this is a problem that’s pretty widespread, and we’d love to add value where we can.”
For transit riders and residents across the region, officials say the stakes go beyond inconvenience.
As Constantine told the Sound Transit board, copper theft is no longer a minor property crime — it is a public safety threat with ripple effects across the Pacific Northwest.
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