Saw the above linked article this morning on Drudge Report.
"Two Men Caught Dismantling Manteca Railroad Tracks
Hoping To Cash In On Metal"
FTA: “…They have no fear of getting caught, doing this in broad daylight, that’s just crazy,” said an Ace Tomato employee.
A man who didn’t want to appear on camera is one of many Ace Tomato employees working in the yard when he noticed the duo destroying the private railroad line…"
Amazingly, the thieves were taking the Ace Tomato Company’s siding out while the Company’s workers were working on the property adjacent to the area where the thieves were lifting the track on the siding.(?)
According to the article a Union Pacific Track was just feet yards away; had the thieves gone there they would have been guilty off a Federal crime. After the 100 yards of the Tomato Company siding they were going to start on the UP track(?)
If the disreputable scrap dealers that buy the obviously stolen material would be prosecuted as co-conspirators, I’d bet the purchasing of said scrap would diminish (even if it is by nothing else than attrition).
The photo with the article linked above shows not only the usual joint bars and tie plates that are stolen (notably, no rail pieces, spikes, or bolts, etc.) - but also the “hook plates” that are used in turnouts at the frog and parts of the switch (as well as some small metal grates that are not railroad tracak parts, as far as I know). Those hook plates are considerably more expensive to purchase, and then install/ replace than the others, due to the need to do that carefully and make sure everything is in the correct location, distances, gage, etc.
Just goes to show that if somebody looks the part, they probably wouldn’t be questioned. It was employees of the outfit that owned the track that called them on it - John Q Public wouldn’t have given it a second thought.
Safety vests are available pretty much anywhere, as are hard hats (although the story didn’t mention whether they were wearing them). Anybody with a computer and a laminating machine can turn out a reasonably authentic looking (if totally bogus) ID badge.
You know what I wonder - how much are these guys actually making for their effort of stealing the scrap metal, relative to the work it is to steal it?
I remember seeing a documentary on drugs on the history channel where they stated that the “average street corner drug dealer” only make about $3.90 an hour - which is amazing because you can make a better wage working at McDonalds.
Just reinforces the notion that crime doesn’t pay.
I think this is the specific track they were dismantling. It looks partially dismantled already in this Google image, which might be fairly recent. Note the sections that still have rails. It’s as if they (or someone else) had trouble taking apart some of them, so just left those rails in place.
Good research, good eye, and good analysis, too ! From the vegetation above and around the spurs on the west side - and that the 'tail track" which would be needed to switch them to the southeast towards the highway looks like it’s been torn up, too - I’d say they’re all out of service. Also, the turnout to the 1st spur to the north looks like it’s been removed by ‘straight-railing’ it, so there’s another track that would seem to be available for salvage = just laying “there for the taking”. [sigh]
They look less suspicious when they’re working in the day…anyone looking might assume they’re supposed to be there working on the tracks. A number of years ago we had someone come right onto our property during working hours and steal a load of lumber. He was so brazen that he walked into the office…had a coffee…chatted up the receptionist…and then hooked up to the load and left. We all ASSUMED he was the interline carrier our customer had arranged…he wasn’t… he was a rather clever and brazen thief. But there’s a happy ending to my story at least…he was caught…
From the excellent posting by Zwingle, it would beg that the question be asked: 'Was this just the first time these guys were questioned about the removal of track ? Judging from the photos, it seems that there has been quite a bit of those industrial tracks taken up in the area of that location. I just wounder what the Whole story turns out to be? Interesting!
I think a lot has to do with looking the part. I work in the construction industry. I wear dress clothes and a tie. I’ve found that I can wander just about any construction site, and nobody ever questions me being there.
Just this week, someone stole $6000 worth of copper from a hospital consrtuction site here in town. The site is locked up at night, so the authorities presume it was stolen during the workday. (It wasn’t me. I learned my lesson this one time up in Canada, when I figured I could steal a whole truckload of lumber by chatting up the receptionist…[:-,])
But even that’s working too hard…a crook up here got caught making millions by simply sending out bogus cleaning invoices to companies. He’d send a few hundred a week…and of those a good percentage got paid…although no services were performed. He finally got caught because he got greedy…he sent a bogus invoice for carpet cleaning to a large company …he was upset when the invoice wasn’t paid and had the nerve to send a threatening collections letter. He ended up kicking the wrong dog…they hired a lawyer, and his lucrative gig was up.
The all time smart thief story for me was in St. Paul. I believe it was the Childrens Musuem. They had just built a new parking ramp, and for some reason they never figured out who was to staff. Some employee found out about this, and for 33 years, every weekday he would go in and man the ramp and pocket all the parking fees ($1,000 a day) One day a few years ago he “retired” to an island somewhere. When he didnt show up the museum called Hennepin County and said “hey your guy isnt there get someone down there” well of course the said “umm you have been staffing the ramp for 30+ years, right?” Its estimated that guy made over a million dollars.
That’s what I would have figured. I know they’ve really been cracking down on the scrap metal industry (especially steel and copper) for just this sort of problem. I thought there had to be some accountability for where the railroad steel (or copper wiring) comes from. I wouldn’t think the relatively meager cost of scrap railroad steel would be worth the risk of getting busted, especially to the recyclers. Even if they found recyclers who would be willing to buy the scrap with no questions asked, that steel still has to go to someone else for processing, so it’s not a closed system.
Obviously the track has been picked apart, so someone’s managed to sell the scrap. Maybe there’s a loophole in the scrapping laws that allow for a certain amount of scrap weight before a verification of the source is necessary? Otherwise, I don’t see how those guys could have possibly avoided getting busted.
Reminds me of two dudes who stole a canoe from the Herman’s Sporting Goods store in Paramus, NJ back in 1971. Just put it on their shoulders and walked out the door. They DID get caught when they went back for the paddles! I guess they never heard the phrase “quit while you’re ahead!”
Because this problem is so widespread most states have laws requiring scrap sellers to provide documentation in the form of a letter or agreement from the railroad to scrap materials and sell them.