William Stickney learned the hard way that the copper thieves ripping pipes and faucets from Lincoln homes are no dummies.
His Near South neighborhood rental property was targeted twice in a four-day span earlier this month, part of a trend that has police sounding the alarm.
"What they didn’t get the first night they came back the next night and finished it off,†Stickney said Tuesday.
A worker from the management company for his rental property discovered the first break-in Feb. 11, Stickney said: Someone had broken the storm door to access the porch, then pried open a dead-bolted door to the kitchen.
Despite the damage, Stickney and the worker didn't immediately find anything missing inside.
Then the worker went to use the restroom later in the day, and found the water service had been shut off. When he turned it back on, it became quite clear what was missing.
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"Water was blowing all over the place,†Stickney said.
The copper pipes had been ripped out.
Stickney thought securing the door again would make his property safe, but the thieves returned and took the remaining pipes from the home's basement.
A few days later, he found that a neighboring house for sale was also stripped of copper.
Lincoln police have recorded 30 residential copper thefts in the past six months, all of them targeting vacant homes. During that same time span, the per-pound price of copper has risen 13 percent, to $3.23 as of Monday, according to the metal price tracking site .
Still, damage caused by the Lincoln thieves — which tops $44,000 — exceeds their ill-gotten gains by sixfold.
An example of this imbalance can be found in a case from Feb. 19, Lincoln Police Officer Angela Sands said.
A real estate agent who was showing a home in the 4200 block of Touzalin Avenue arrived to find the front door ajar, Sands said. Burglars had ripped out kitchen faucets and a shower fixture, causing significant damage.
“They left a huge hole in their nice tile," Sands said.
Copper piping was cut from the water heater in the basement.
The thieves left with just $250 worth of copper, Sands said, but they caused thousands in damage to the home.
At Stickney's property, he's looking at more than $2,200 in damage and was still haggling with his insurance company over the plumbing costs.
He was told the stolen pipes were worth about $200.
Police haven't arrested the culprits yet, Sands said, and they encourage anyone with information on these thefts to call 402-441-6000.
In the meantime, Stickney encourages landlords and homeowners to protect their properties. Consider installing motion-sensor lights, he said, and be aware that home insurers might not cover thefts from homes that have been vacant more than a month.
"Secure your place down," he said.