From David Richie:
Sheriff's deputies in El Dorado County continue their investigations of several incidents related to thefts of machinery or equipment containing copper and other precious metals. Construction storage areas, rooftop air conditioning equipment and parked vehicles all are being targeted.
An office manager at a building in El Dorado Hills contacted the sheriff's office last week after she tried to turn on the building's air conditioning system for the first time this year. Nothing happened. When employees investigated, they discovered that during the past few months someone got up on the roof and ripped apart the air conditioner to get at its copper components. The estimated cost to repair the damage is in excess of $5,000.
On Sunday, a man told deputies that he had left his Jeep Wrangler parked near Newtown Road and Fort Jim Road on April 13 with a "for sale" sign in the window. When he went back to check it on Sunday, he noticed that the engine sounded very loud. Someone had crawled under the vehicle to cut out his catalytic converter.
The catalytic converter thieves were especially active last month, striking in broad daylight in El Dorado Hills. Several vehicles were hit in the Blue Shield office parking lot and outside Nugget in the Town Center complex.
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