Guardia Civil officers in Ronda have detained a man in connection with the theft of over five kilometres of copper cables.
The price of copper has risen by 130% in recent years and this has spawned a lucrative black market and regular thefts of the material.
In Ronda, Guardia Civil officers caught one man red-handed as he was cutting cables belonging to RENFE, the rail network operators. He had already rolled up some 600 metres of cable ready to load it into his vehicle when he was discovered. The man was taken to the National Police station where further investigation revealed that the man was responsible for the theft of over five kilometres of cable in total.
RENFE value the stolen cable at €108,000, although the thief would have received far less for his trouble as the valuation includes the cost of replacing the cable.