Thieves target circuit breakers, police say

Circuit breakers appear to have made it onto the list of potential targets for thieves across the state who are after metals and infrastructure.

Riverside County sheriff’s officials began investigating a spike in circuit breaker thefts in February, the department said in a news release Wednesday. Officials arrested Eugene Popa, 65, of Perris last week and seized thousands of allegedly stolen circuit breakers stacked in large storage containers at two locations.

Officials allege Popa purchased stolen circuit breakers from thieves who took them from construction sites or retail stores and then attempted to resell them online, officials allege.

In recent years, thieves have been stealing more and more copper, bronze and other metals from streets, buildings and construction sites, most likely in the hope of selling the goods as scrap. Because of the thefts, some streets and bridges, such as the rebuilt 6th Street Viaduct, are in the dark.

More than 100 memorial plaques were stolen from a cemetery in Carson. Fire hydrants, with their brass interiors, became such popular targets that utility companies changed their design so thieves couldn’t get to their bolts so easily. In Pasadena, nearly a dozen century-old light poles were ripped from the ground.

Now, circuit breakers seem to be attracting the attention of thieves. The idea of ​​buying a circuit breaker that isn’t repackaged worries Ronnie Gor, a licensed contractor and developer.

Used circuit breakers, like the ones Popa reportedly sells online, can be dangerous. If you’re repairing a circuit breaker in your home, you should stick with a new breaker and call a licensed electrician, Gor said.

“If something goes wrong, your life could be in danger,” she said.

As a safeguard against theft during construction, circuit breakers are usually installed in nearly completed homes that already have locks or other security features, Gor said. She has had tools and other equipment stolen from construction sites before, she said, but never circuit breakers.

Individual circuit breakers can cost anywhere from $7 to over $60, depending on the amperage and model.

Paul Dashevsky of GreatBuildz, a website that connects consumers with builders, said circuit breakers were stolen from a house he renovated for sale about a decade ago, but none have been stolen since. “One day you have your breaker box,” he said, “and the next day you have no breakers.”

The cost of the replacement was about $400, he said. “Of course it’s frustrating,” he said, but the loss hasn’t bankrupted him.