Business frustrated with copper thefts at Oakland freeway overpass
Repeat copper thefts near I-880 overpass in Oakland
Copper thieves targeting state-owned parking lot near freeway overpass
OAKLAND, Calif. - Electrical boxes. Lampposts. Light fixtures. You name it, they've been stolen by thieves looking for copper wire at an abandoned state-owned parking lot under I-880 near High Street in East Oakland.
"They're pulling out wires from the ceiling, they're taking out the fence panel, they're coming down my street, now scrapping it," said Jason Kochan, vice president at a metal-fabrication company on nearby 45th Avenue who's had a front-row seat to what he says has been an unsatisfactory response from law enforcement.
"It makes me feel very unsafe, and it makes me feel very unprotected, too," he said.
Business official frustrated by Oakland police and CHP
What they're saying:
Kochan said he's repeatedly called Oakland police and the CHP about thefts, he says, without success.
"We're constantly given the run-around, we're told that I have to be on property to call in criminal activity, that I can't be at my house or see things via camera," he said.
Kochan said each agency often refers him to the other.
"OPD is pretty much saying that's not their jurisdiction, it's CHP's jurisdiction, and CHP is saying… they don't know about it because it's been called in to OPD," Kochan said.
This surveillance video from his business shows Oakland police contacting suspects with fencing, copper wiring and a lamppost last year, but the officers drive off without making any arrests.
The suspects return in the middle of the night and are again contacted by police. Again, no arrests.
"They're let go, and I'm never given an answer to why they're let go, especially when they're caught red-handed," Kochan said.
His father, Mike Kochan, who owns the company said, "It's just very frustrating for us."
Mike Kochan said when his father - the former owner - called police decades ago, "They actually came and they did something about it. Now, you call them, they show up a few days later and then they say, ‘Where are they?’ "
Law enforcement faces challenges
The other side:
Speaking generally, a CHP officer familiar with the issue told KTVU their hands are often tied if the actual theft isn't committed in their presence and even if there's video, it's often difficult to confirm who the suspect is, especially if response time is delayed.
Jason Kochan said, "I care because there's a sense of, there needs to be law and order, and there needs to be people held accountable for this stuff."
Authorities say copper theft continues to be a problem and that government entities and large companies aren't immune. Charges have been filed in Alameda County against thieves accused of stealing copper from PG&E and Oakland Housing Authority properties.
Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on X @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan
The Source: KTVU reporting
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