Nov 16, 2007 9:58 am US/Eastern
Electricity Thieves Put Others In Extreme Danger
BALTIMORE (WJZ) ―
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Freezing temperatures could pose a danger that you probably haven't thought about, and it involves electricity theft.
AP
As winter approaches, freezing temperatures could pose a danger that you probably haven't thought about. The problem centers around electricity theft.
Kathryn Brown reports undercover investigators say there are some warnings you need to hear.
The danger comes in when criminals link up to your electricity box or even to the wires running outside your home.
They often don't know what they're doing, and as it gets colder, the risk for fire gets bigger.
"The wires are sparking, and it's just a matter of time before there's a fire," said BGE fraud investigator Jack Wicks.
Wicks says the dangers of electricity theft are bigger than ever. The criminals are getting smarter and the techniques hard to detect.
"We've had connections where we've pulled them up, and we've just followed trails all over the house where the wires have melted into the asphalt on the roof," said Wicks.
It's not just illegal. It's also dangerous, even deadly.
"You have shock, electrocution, you have children running around some of these backyards," said BGE supervisor Bernie Smith. "It's dangerous to the perpetrators, their families, their neighborhood and any first responders."
The tragic lesson was hammered home when veteran firefighter Allen Roberts was killed in a Greektown blaze last October.
The building's residents had rigged the power lines.
Robert's widow Teresa wants others to learn from her husband's sacrifice.
"I'm angry because of how this whole fire started," said Roberts. "It just seems like none of this should be happening."
According to BGE, electricity theft is not just a city problem. It happens in every county in the state and in every state in the country.
"Not just in poor neighborhoods. All income levels, all areas of the city, residential, commercial," said Smith.
"It's to the degree that it is a concern, definitely a concern," said Kevin Cartwright of the Baltimore City Fire Department.
If you suspect someone is stealing electricity, BGE urges you not to investigate yourself. Call their hotline, and they typically get investigators to you within 24 hours.
BGE investigators see about 150 cases of electricity theft per day.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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