WILMINGTON, DE – Police caught a Wilmington man on the roof of a Family Dollar store as he was trying to cut and steal copper pipe from the store’s HVAC system. Thieves steal copper in order to resell the material to metal scrapyards. Copper currently fetches around $4.72 per pound on the open market.
Delaware State Police arrested 47-year-old Robert Berry of Wilmington following their burglary investigation on Thursday morning.
“On Thursday, at approximately 10:02 a.m., troopers and officers from the Wilmington Police Department and New Castle County Police Department responded to the Family Dollar located at 4331 Governor Printz Boulevard, Wilmington, DE for a reported burglary in progress,” the Delaware State Police said. “Upon their arrival responding officers observed a male suspect climbing onto the roof of the business. Troopers and officers established a perimeter around the Merchants Square shopping center.”
The male suspect was then taken into custody as he exited a vacant building just south of the Family Dollar. Further investigation revealed the suspect, identified as Robert Berry, had attempted to steal copper from air conditioning units on the roof of the Family Dollar. A computer inquiry also revealed Berry was wanted and had active warrants for prior thefts.