Copper wire thieves strike northwest Las Vegas valley neighborhood

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Copper wire thieves struck again for the second time in a northwest valley neighborhood.

Robert Seres’ home backs up to the road where these lampposts are and says it’s caused a major safety concern for him and his neighbors.

“There’s nothing behind us here. It’s an empty desert and no one is driving back there in the middle of the night when it happens around 2 a.m. to 3 a.m. in the morning,” Seres told 8 News Now.

The city said it is taking action by using locks and welded-down panels to ensure that these thieves don’t strike again.

The county is also stepping up its efforts as it installed solar-powered streetlights in the east valley. A first-of-its-kind installation to deter this continued crime as 500,000 feet of copper wiring has been stolen from the county in the last two years.

Other northwest valley residents, like Sheri Silberstein, say crime in the area is ramping up and they feel that the lack of lighting is a main component.

“I remember when I first moved out here, this was considered the safe area,” Silberstein told 8 News Now. “Due to the lack of lighting outside my neighborhood, I don’t walk my dogs at night anymore because I don’t feel safe.”

If you see copper wire theft occurring, call 9-1-1 immediately. You can also report suspected theft and streetlight outages by going to www.seeclickfix.com or calling the city’s public works team at 702-229-6272.

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