By Daniel L. Bamberg
daniel@centrevillepress.com
There’s a scene in the film “The Dark Knight” where the late Heath Ledger as the Joker suggests, “this town needs a better class of criminal.” Certainly that sentence is oxymoronic in nature. There are some acts of criminality, however which many find to be more classless than others. Take the recent local thefts of copper wire for example. It’s as one local said recently, “These thieves are working harder at stealing than they would likely be making an honest living.” Last week it was discovered at Bethlehem Baptist Church and the Pinetucky Volunteer Fire Department, someone stole copper wiring. With a minimal rise in the value of scrap copper, wiring theft is on the rise. According to Bethlehem Baptist’s Treasurer and Music Director Robert Poe while the theft will probably only earn the thieves around $30 to $40 it has cost BBC nearly $1,500 in damages.
The church is located on highway 219 just outside of the Bibb County area. They along with the PVFD, are the third and fourth targets in the area within less than two weeks. Just inside the Bibb County line on 219 Tabernacle Baptist Church along with the home of Aubrey Cash experienced similar thefts only days before.
Over the past few years an alarming sense has come over the Bibb County community that simply once did not exist. Places once considered sacred are no longer safe from criminal irreverence. Many remember the church burnings in the area just a few years ago. In Bibb County during 2009 year alone, there have been two reported cemetery vandalisms, and now four church vandalisms. This is just what has been reported. The possibility that some incidents have gone unnoticed is certainly not fantastical.
In last week’s theft of wire from BBC the crime could have certainly become more severe had a church member not smelled gas. During the taking of the copper wiring from the heating and air unit propane was released. “They didn’t have the decency to turn the gas off. Instead they let it escape which could have caused an explosion. This could have been much worse,” said Poe. One of our members got to the church and smelled the gas. Another thing was these thieves ran the risk of electrocuting themselves because the wires were still hot when they removed them. All they did was trip the breaker,” he furthered. Poe also expressed that in a conversation with the church’s insurance company the agent he spoke with mentioned there had been 15 cases of copper wiring theft with clients of that office last week alone.
The Perry County Sheriff’s Office is currently investigating the break in and theft of BBC and PVFD. Meanwhile Bibb County Sheriff’s Office is doing the same with the Tabernacle Baptist and Aubrey Cash residence situation. According to these sources these senseless acts have not just been criminal but careless and could have resulted in something much more severe. If anyone has information regarding these incidents they are encouraged to contact the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office (205) 926–4683 and/or the Perry County Sheriff’s Office (334) 683-6534.
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