Copper thieves target cell towers in both Carolinas

Thieves that cellular phone service providers say are hitting on both sides of the border in both Carolinas stole thousands of dollars in copper air conditioning coils Thursday from a cell tower site near Lake Wylie, according to a police report.

Officials with Verizon found out about the theft from an alarm Thursday afternoon around 3:45 p.m. signaling that the cell tower site had overheated, then told deputies that they had the same problem in Gaston County and other parts of the Charlotte area.

The suspects hit around the same time during each theft of copper, Verizon officials told police, and that locks are cut off each time by the unknown suspects.

The damaged air conditioners would require at least $6,000 in repairs or $12,000 to replace the units gutted by the thieves.

This story was originally published April 11, 2015 at 3:16 PM with the headline "Copper thieves target cell towers in both Carolinas."