DENVER — Copper wire thefts on Denver Regional Transportation District rail lines are down sharply compared with this time last year.
There have been eight thefts so far this year compared with 25 at this point last year. According to RTD, the most recent thefts were along the G line in the Arvada area.
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RTD credits increased police visibility, cooperation with local law enforcement and scrap metal yards, and its use of cameras and other technology.
“We've really done a huge effort over the winter and the spring, and that's where we're really starting to see the decreases just based off of the proactiveness of our police department,” RTD Chief of Police Steve Martingano said.
Martingano said while the copper wire itself is only a few dollars, the real impact is having to shut down their train system when a theft happens.
“When that happens, we have to bring in buses to move riders from that platform until trains can run again or passengers can reach their destinations. The effect on customers is very minimal,” he said.
RTD has 105 officers spread out over 2,300 square miles.
“It's not that many officers to be all over the place. We have really good relationships with our local police officers. We work with them. We have really great camera systems. We show pictures of our suspects and do joint efforts in regard to identifying the suspects and then arresting them,” Martingano added.
Martingano said they had around four arrests within the last year, adding that a lot of the times, thieves go to multiple areas within a couple miles of each other.
“A lot of our individuals that we have been arresting have been more of a local population and doing it for the money aspect of it, not a broader organized ring,” Martingano said.
RTD said a lot of the copper wire that is stolen from them is being sold at scrap metal places and it’s been proactive in working with those places.
“If they see what our copper wire looks like, chances are it was removed illegally. So, they've really been cooperative in working with our detectives anytime that anyone comes in with it,” Martingano said.
Martingano said RTD has thousands of cameras, and they utilize their technology to identify individuals.
“Our trains go along properties, so we look at different entry points and work on trying to close those gaps. We'll change our cameras to get better angles. We'll add additional cameras if we're starting to see blind spots that we're not seeing,” he told Denver7.
Overall, RTD said it’s a team effort when it comes to cooper wire theft.
“Numbers are going down. It's a one RTD approach, so it's not just our police department. Our operators, our maintenance workers, everyone that works within the system has been calling in when they see holes in the fence or individuals that are trespassing a lot quicker,” Martingano said.
Martingano said they are hoping to utilize more technology in the near future.
“Maybe utilize drone technology to be able to have something that goes along the tracks, so our officers don't have to sit there and try to walk the tracks at times,” he said.
RTD recommends downloading their newly launched Next Ride app.
“It’s a free, downloadable app. You're able to report security events on that. We get a lot of information from our customers when they see something because they're the ones riding every day. They see something suspicious, they let us know and we check it out,” Martingano said.
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