Civil Guard arrests three for theft of telephone cable valued at €22,700
Three residents of Pilas (Seville) were arrested for removing cable from telephone lines in Montánchez. The intercepted vehicle contained cabling and tools for climbing poles.
Three arrested for theft of telecommunications cable in Montánchez
According to El Confidencial, the Civil Guard has arrested three residents of Pilas (Seville) as suspected perpetrators of the theft of telephone line cable from the Cáceres municipality of Montánchez, valued at approximately €22,700. The material was identified as originating from several sections of disused lines in that locality.
The investigation began in May when a patrol intercepted a saloon car travelling on the A-66 motorway as it passed through Villafranca de los Barros (Badajoz). The three occupants had criminal records for copper theft. Agents found a significant quantity of telecommunications cabling in the vehicle whose legitimate origin they could not verify, along with tools for cutting conductive material and specialist footwear—known as "cat's paws"—used for climbing vertical structures such as line poles.
Analysis of the seized material and inquiries coordinated with other Civil Guard units in Cáceres province allowed sufficient evidence to be gathered to determine that the cable had been stolen recently. The company that filed the complaint subsequently confirmed that the material corresponded to disused telephone lines from Montánchez and valued it at approximately €22,700.
With this evidence, between July and early October, Civil Guard officers from Seville located and arrested the three individuals involved in their municipalities of residence. The proceedings have been forwarded to the Civil and Instructional Section of the District Court of Cáceres.
Source: El Confidencial