East Texas

By KENNETH DEAN
Staff Writer

ATHENS — The two alleged thieves took copper from the back of a scrap iron company, and then walked in the front door to sell the company its own property. But, according to police, they ran into a snag— a witness saw the entire crime and called authorities.

Athens Police Lt. Bill Gurley said a citizen contacted his department, reporting two subjects were carrying a large amount of scrap metal down a road running beside Prengler Iron and Metal on U.S. Highway 175.

“When officers first arrived, they found the subjects inside the business having the material weighed for sale,” he said.

He added that the subjects originally told officers they found the copper on the road.

“After questioning them, one did later admit that the other man had stolen the copper and he was asked to help sell it. They then admitted they stole the copper from the backside of the business, walked around to the front side, and were selling it to the company when police arrived,” he said.

Gurley said 28-year-old Arthuro Delfino Resindes and 44-year-old Juan Cisnero Flores were both arrested on state-jail felony charges of stealing copper, but were also being held in the Henderson County Jail on Immigration Customs Enforcement detainers, due to their illegal immigrant status.

Of the crime, Gurley said copper thefts are prevalent right now because the metal is netting a high price, but he was dumbfounded over the two men’s method.

“It’s not too often they steal from someone out the back then try to sell it back to them in the front of a business,” he said.

Gurley said Athens, like other communities, is facing copper thefts almost daily.

“They have no respect. They are stealing the copper from the air conditioners at churches, charitable organizations and the elderly,” he said. “In my opinion we need some type of state law that will create some restrictions on taking this copper in at these salvage places, such as picture identification. We just need something that might deter some of these crimes.”

Updated Thursday, June 12, 2008 at 3:44 p.m. CDT