Residents are scared as copper burglars continue to target streetlights in Los Angeles’ Los Ferris neighborhood, leaving residential blocks completely in the dark.
Neighbors say the burglars are targeting voltage boxes and stealing as much copper wire as possible.
“When someone is lifting the cover, there’s high voltage copper and they’re cutting all the wires,” a neighbor tells KTLA’s Rick Chambers.
Steal copper wire and steal the entire neighborhood to Rosferris in the dark. Voltage box copper wire thief targets Los Feliz. (KTLA) KTLA’s Rick Chambers stands in the darkness patched in one of the affected areas on April 10, 2025, without the help of camera lights or street lights. (KTLA) The affected neighborhoods of Los Ferris have mostly antique streetlights. (KTLA) A thief steals copper wire and leaves the whole neighborhood behind in the darkness at Rosferris. Voltage box copper wire thief targets Los Feliz. (KTLA)
A nearby security camera recently caught a male suspect under the law. When the wire is cut, the entire street is left in the darkness.
“It darkens everything and leaves two streets up and down,” said resident Julie Pascal.
“When I go for a night walk, you don’t want to travel and fall,” said neighbor John Fleck. “We don’t want to be taken away either. There’s no light anymore.”
Some neighbors said it is not only a safety hazard, but also provides the perfect opportunity for robbers who need a simple cover.
“All the lights are off and the night is dark and dark,” said resident Barbara Wright. “It scares me, I’m scared of going out. [My neighbor] That’s scary. ”
“We had a break-in in our car, but now there’s no light, so we’re afraid of what will happen at night,” Sarah Yun said.
Fleck and Randy Laborde have handed out flyers for the area and have paid attention to the safety of many of the darkened streets.
Despite complaints against city leaders, they claim that nothing has been done to prevent ongoing theft.
In a statement to the KTLA, Councillor Nithya Raman, who represents the area, said she is aware of the issue and is working closely to fix the lights as soon as possible to ensure that the neighborhood is safe while the lights are out.
“To give you a timeline anywhere from two months to a year,” Laborde said. “It seems quite long. I don’t know why they can’t fix it now.”
“If you’re paying $28,000 for half of your annual property tax bill, can you ask for some lighting?
As residents wait for impending repairs, many people install motion detectors outside their homes to catch and stop lurking thieves.
Source link
