Sheriff Keith Nygren is asking residents to be on the lookout for suspicious vehicles and people, after several residential burglaries have occurred where offenders forced entry into homes, then cut copper piping from the basement.
Since early December, the Sheriff’s Office has taken numerous reports of abandoned and foreclosed properties being burglarized in Marengo, Wonder Lake, and McHenry. Generally, the offenders force entry into the home and use cutting tools to strip copper pipes from the basement of these homes. It is also common for offenders to take air conditioner units and other large appliances which house copper inside them. With the downturn in the economy, and copper fluctuating between three and four dollars per pound, there has been ample motivation for offenders to conduct these burglaries. On average, a house may have fifty to sixty pounds of copper pipes in the basement.
Evidence technicians have processed each location and information has been gathered through neighborhood canvassing. At one location, a small green truck was observed leaving the area. Many times offenders will utilize two vehicles, with one acting as a lookout.
Sheriff Keith Nygren encourages anyone with information regarding these investigations to contact either the McHenry County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-762-STOP (7867), the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office Tip Line at (815) 338-2144, or the tip line email address; [email protected]. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward up to $1,000.00 for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of the offender(s). Crime Stoppers does not use caller ID.
