Bogus council workmen have been touring the Scottish countryside stealing road signs that have become a valuable commodity as a result of the worldwide shortage of metal.
In the first of a spate of metal thefts across the UK, 16 aluminium signs, including Stop, Give Way and Dangerous Bends were stolen in Netherley, Aberdeenshire, after two men wearing reflective jackets and trousers were seen acting suspiciously in the area at the start of the week.
The second incident on Wednesday night involved a break-in to premises on Station Road, Fordoun, when a large quantity of stainless steel parts and accessories were stolen, while on the same evening a large stainless steel bowl was taken from premises on Badentoy Way, Badentoy Industrial Estate, Portlethen.
The property stolen in each of the three thefts is valued at a four-figure sum and it is thought the culprits may have used a large vehicle to remove the items.
Lead and copper have become increasingly valuable because of a world shortage coupled with high demands in China, India and Dubai, and in the past two years the fluctuating price of copper has risen by 30%.
The north-east appears to be the worst affected area of Scotland with only Tayside police reporting a similar, although sporadic, problem with metal theft.
More than 50 thefts of lead and copper have been reported to Grampian Police in the last three months and they are warning that rooftop robberies could result in serious injury.
The total value stolen in the incidents in the force area for the three months to the end of October was nearly £100,000.
In one incident, a cancer care centre ended up with a £3000 bill because of damage after lead was stripped from its roof. Police are also investigating a number of high-value thefts of other types of metals from industrial premises connected to the oil industry.
Across Scotland, hundreds of drain covers have disappeared, a statue of Olympic champion Steve Ovett was stolen in Brighton, and in some cases thieves have cut through live electricity and gas mains to steal metal.
Scrap dealers in Aberdeen are helping to clamp down on the problem. David McAllister, a partner with Panda Rosa Metals in Aberdeenshire, said: "We are looking to eliminate lead theft by refusing to accept deliveries from certain individuals. People who turn up expecting to make money from stolen materials will not be accepted or tolerated."
An Aberdeenshire Council spokesman said: "Whoever took these signs has no consideration for motorists' safety and we would urge road users to take extra care on this route while the signs are replaced."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article