The Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office has arrested four people in connection with an unusual theft of copper from Rio Tinto Kennecott’s mining operations.
The scale and value of the copper is what has stunned deputies.
“The total value of the recovered items we estimate at $147,000,” said Brittany Karzen, a spokesperson for the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office. “This was a very large, costly theft.”
Earlier this month, deputies were contacted by Rio Tinto Kennecott, reporting the theft of an 8,600-pound copper mold from the mine, Karzen said. The investigation led to a pair of arrests earlier this week.
On Thursday, FOX 13 News spotted deputies and agents with the Utah Attorney General’s Office searching Ortiz Metal Processing in Salt Lake City. Deputies confirmed they arrested a third person, as well as the owner of the scrap yard on suspicion of purchasing stolen property.
“When we served the search warrant, we found some additional items that appeared to be out of place. Through further investigation it was identified as Kennecott property,” Karzen said Friday.