The Tomball Police Department is investigating a pair of copper thefts in the city that caused damage estimated at more than $50,000.

Both thefts occurred on Aug. 8, one at a power pole in the 30700 block of Ulrich and another at Elliot Electric at 201 S. Persimmon. The theft on Ulrich resulted in the loss of an estimated $10,000 worth of copper wiring, while the wiring stolen at Elliot Electric is priced at approximately $40,000, according to Tomball Police.

But while both thefts occurred in the same day, Tomball Police don’t believe the two are related.

“These were two different types of thefts,” Det. Ron McGuillon said.

He explained that at Elliott Electric, the suspects cut a hole in a back wall of the building, entered the premises and stole “numerous spools of wire.”

Meanwhile, the theft on Ulrich involved the suspects cutting the electrical wires on a power pole, cutting an electrical conduit at a nearby building and using a truck to rip the wiring out of the walls and off of the power pole, McGuillon said.

He added that thefts in a similar manner have occurred in the Tomball and Magnolia area in the past several months and that investigators believe the same suspect is involved.

In September 2009, Tomball Police arrested 26-year-old Darrell Parsons and an accomplice, John Trahan, in a suspected copper wire theft.

Then, on Aug. 2, Parsons was arrested again and charged with evading arrest and theft, both felony charges.

McGuillon called the recent copper thefts and those in the past year or so “the same method, the same M.O.”

Det. Albert Chambers said police are investigating a “two-man group” recently arrested in south Montgomery County who are suspected in a string of copper thefts, with authorities in Tomball having “a reason to believe they have been in this area.”

With the value of copper nearing record levels, what has been a long time problem is becoming increasingly troublesome for local businesses and authorities.

While scrap yards, by law, are required to maintain detailed records of who sells copper wiring, Chambers explained they are also not allowed to ask where the wiring came from. He also said copper thieves are taking greater chances and utilizing different approaches to stealing and selling copper wiring.

“These jokers are getting bold,” he said. “If they cut the wrong wire, it will kill them.”

He added that while copper thieves realize scrap yards will no longer buy from they, the suspects will often send acquaintences or family members to make the sell.

“They’re getting people they know to sell it, like a family member or a girlfriend,” Chambers said.

With the Parsons case, he said, the suspect allegedly sent “a mother and daughter” to a local scrap yard to make the deal.

“It’s almost like you’ve got to catch them doing it,” Chambers said. “It’s hard to tell if it’s stolen.”

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