Police in Denver metro area arrest suspected copper thieves

Police in the Denver metro area say they arrested three copper thieves after catching them in the act.

On Thursday, officers in Commerce City say they stopped to investigate a suspicious vehicle parked on the shoulder of Highway 2 and caught the copper thieves in the act.

Officers arrested three suspects who have allegedly been stealing copper wiring from utility and light poles. The trio reportedly caused tens of thousands of dollars in damage.

"Thankfully, we intervened before the trio could cause even more destruction," the Commerce City Police Department said.

The suspects are facing charges of criminal mischief, theft and first-degree tampering. The CCPD says one suspect also had an outstanding warrant.

The vehicle turned out to be an unreported stolen vehicle, and police expect additional charges of motor vehicle theft to be added to the list.

"We've been experiencing an uptick in copper wire theft since the first of the year. You can help us catch these criminals, though. If you see something suspicious like our officers did yesterday-- call us. We'll check it out. Together we can be proactive and not simply reactive to this costly crime," the police department said.