Metal thieves give police that sinking feeling

Aug 22 2008 by Jenny Wood, Perthshire Advertiser Friday

CRIMINALS in the Big County have stooped to new levels, resorting to stealing the kitchen sink.

As the metal theft crime-wave continues to sweep Perth and Kinross, scores of stainless steel sinks were stolen from Fair City firm Sideys.

Between 100 and 150 sinks – stripped from council properties as part of the local authority’s kitchen revamp project – were taken from Sidey’s Inveralmond site last weekend.

Gordon McGregor of Sideys explained: “They had been put to one side to be prepared for recycling, but when we came in on Monday they were all gone.

“That’s a lot of sinks. Either a fair-sized vehicle would have been needed or several trips made to take the lot away.”

The substantial haul, worth around £600, was stolen sometime between 3.30pm on Friday and 7.45am on Monday. Anyone who saw anything suspicious close to Sideys site on Inveralmond Road is urged to contact the police.

And the spiralling cost of metal crime to the Big County continues to soar. A whopping £12,000 of copper cabling was stolen from a Carse of Gowrie site earlier this week.

A weighty two-tonnes of wiring belonging to Scottish and Southern Energy was stolen from Powerteam Electrical Services between 5pm on Friday and noon on Tuesday.

A vehicle was used and police are keen to hear if anyone spotted anything suspicious in the Valleyfield area, near Errol, where the cabling was stored.

Anyone with information which may help police investigating metal theft across Perth and Kinross is urged to call 0845 600 5705.