Alpine Mountain Offers Reward After Copper Thefts

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11 July 2014

Push to The Latest: No

SAM Magazine—Price Township, Pa., July 11, 2014—Alpine Mountain is offering a $10,000 reward after thieves hit the ski resort repeatedly over the past two weeks, taking nearly a mile's worth of heavy-gauge copper wire. The thefts have slowed, but not deterred, new owners' efforts to renovate the area ahead of the 2014-15 season.

Kevin Fabiano Sr., who with his son Kevin Jr. bought the area this past spring, said that thieves cut into the wiring system at condenser boxes, lift shacks, and the maintenance building and ripped out the wire, most of which ran through underground conduit. The bandits commandeered an onsite backhoe and acetylene torch to cut into the system. The thefts, five or six over a two-week period, often occurred in out-of-the-way areas of the resort.

To discourage further heists, the area has installed video surveillance and hired a night-time security crew. It is also planning to replace the copper wire with less-lucrative aluminum. And there's that reward, too.

Fabiano believes the thieves will be caught. They appeared to know exactly where the key access points were, and used a triaxle dump truck to haul off the wire. These clues, he said, narrow the list of suspects considerably, and the state police are proceeding with an investigation.

As for the resort's future, the Fabianos are discouraged but not dissuaded from their renovation project. “We're putting all this money in, so this setback is disheartening,” Fabiano said. “But the renovation of the lodge is coming along well, and it will provide a nice experience next year.” He said that all renovations remain on track for the coming winter.