Crime & Safety
Metal Yards Watched in Brandon as Metal Theft Crackdown Heats Up
The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office has assigned a special unit to tackle metal theft, netting 38 arrests in six weeks. Metal yards throughout the county are being watched, including in Gibsonton, which led to the arrest of two Riverview men Aug. 3.
The sheriff’s Office is cracking down on metal theft throughout Hillsborough County, with a special unit assigned to the crime announcing two more arrests Aug. 3.
The arrests were made by detectives and deputies assigned to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office District 4 Metal Thefts Investigative Unit. The unit has made 38 arrests in the six weeks it has been operational.
"Many of the people who are doing this have a substance abuse issue and can’t hold jobs because of their addictions," said District 4 Cpl. Steve Billor. "They are looking for some quick and easy money and (stealing metal) doesn’t require a lot of skill.”
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Billor said metal theft is not limited to one area.
“You have a few yards in Brandon, Plant City and Tampa," he said. "These crimes are happening all over the county, and we are watching yards all over the county.”
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With a large number of metal recycling yards, the Gibsonton area, however, has become a mecca for many thieves looking for a quick buck, Billor said.
Two Riverview men—William Alfred Dickens, 49, of 13813 Hillcrest Drive, and Richard Macbay, 36, of 11727 Stonewood Gate Drive—were arrested Aug. 3 and face charges of dealing in stolen property. They allegedly sold metal to a recycling company in Gibsonton, as noted in a .
The metal thefts unit is normally headed by Det. Dillon Corr, but the unit drafted several school resource deputies for the summer crackdown. Corr now commands five deputies in his hunt for metal thieves.
The unit is using a three-pronged approach to the problem, Billor said.
“We are using all our investigative tools to do proactive investigations, looking at specific people that are selling the metal, going to the different places where they can sell it," he said.
Also under way, Billor said, are "surveillance and saturations, in marked and unmarked cars, of sites where they may steal the metal.”
Although the black market in stolen metal is difficult to measure, Billor said it’s a crime of opportunity that can fluctuate with the market and state of the economy.
“They are getting pennies on the dollar for these metals," he said, "so they have to bring in a certain amount to bring in some money."
