Alleged copper thief nabbed

A transient jailed for allegedly stealing copper piping from a vacant building may be tied to a previous theft there.

Roger Schenkhuizen, 33, was booked into the Carson City Jail at 5:07 a.m. Wednesday on suspicion of felony burglary.

According to the police report, an alarm went off at the vacant Sak'n Save in the 2100 block of Highway 50 East.

When police arrived they found a hole cut into a chain link fence surrounding a room that housed a refrigeration unit. There was also a hole in the siding, which led into the room, the report states.

When officers got inside they found a dufflebag, bolt cutters and pieces of copper pipe lying on the ground.

With the only escape route being via the roof, the Carson City Fire Department was called for use of their ladder and Schenkhuizen was allegedly found hiding there, the report states.

A person connected to the building arrived and reported the damage would likely cost several thousand dollars to repair. The building had two previous burglaries in which copper pipe for the refrigeration unit was stolen and it cost $115,000 to repair, the report states.

According to the Coalition Against Copper Theft, since commodity prices for copper have more than doubled in the past two years, the theft of copper has grown exponentially. Copper now goes for more than $4 a pound. In 2009 it was at $1.25 a pound.

A conservative estimate by the Department of Energy indicates copper wire theft costs the U.S. almost $1 billion per year.

Schenkhuizen is being held on $25,000.