Major power cable theft gang disrupted in Europe

German and Bulgarian authorities have busted a criminal group that was involved in the large-scale theft of power cables across Germany, making eight arrests.

The disappearance of the cables caused major disruptions to large public construction sites, according to Eurojust and Europol, which helped to coordinate the operation.

The network, consisting mostly of Bulgarian nationals, set up a large-scale operation to steal power cables in three states in Germany, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Hesse and Saarland. After stealing the power cables, the group sold them on for "substantial profits" that were then transferred to Bulgaria, according to a Eurojust statement.

Through investigations, the authorities were able to link 45 individual cases of power cable theft with a total value of around €1m ($1.05m).

In the early hours of December 17, authorities in Bulgaria and Germany took action with nearly 200 officers, investigators and prosecutors deployed. The operation was coordinated from Eurojust’s headquarters in The Hague.

All told, there were 24 house searches, nine personal searches and six car searches in Bulgaria during which the authorities were able to seize items such as telephones and documents that will now be used to continue investigations into the group.

Cable theft is a growing problem for the utilities, telecommunications and the transportation sectors around the world, driven in part by escalating values for the copper and aluminium used in them.

The overall damage caused by metal theft typically far exceeds the value of the stolen metal itself - with some experts estimating it to be 50-fold higher. Intelligence shows that the stolen metal is often transported across several borders and sold as scrap, or for recycling, far away from the scene of the crime.

A 2023 report in Smart Energy International suggests that, in some countries, cable theft has become a serious threat to public safety and national security as it can disrupt critical infrastructure.

In one recent incident in the UK, a man was arrested after stealing £2,000-worth (around $2,500) of cabling from a breast cancer screening unit in Scunthorpe, disrupting the delivery of services to the public. There has also been a spate of cases in the UK in which thieves have targeted solar energy farms, which use a great deal of cabling.