by Nick Beres
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. -- Thousands of dollars worth of new copper has been stolen from a Rutherford County business, and police said it was an inside job.
"It cost the company potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars," said Kyle Evans with the Murfreesboro Police Department.
Over a series of months, detectives said a crew foreman with Southern States Electric would over-order the amount of copper he needed to complete jobs and then then keep about ten percent for himself to re-sell it as scrap.
The management at Southern States Electric became suspicious over the amount of copper ordered and filed a police report. Detectives expected to arrest the foreman in question by the end of the week.
A foreman accused of stealing copper from an employer is unusual, but police said it is one way to avoid the dangers of stealing the wire out of building and off power poles. In several instances around the country copper thieves have been electrocuted trying to remove the valuable metal.
Evans said the recent thefts also put the squeeze on the cost of copper locally.
"In effect, every consumer whether you are buying something or building a house, it effects everybody's pocketbook in the long run," said Evans
