Criminal gangs cash in as scrap becomes the new precious metal
Organised criminals across Scotland are profiting from a worldwide rise in metal prices by stealing copper cable from railways and utility substations, wheeling away thousands of shopping trolleys, melting down man-hole covers and even uprooting road signs.
The black market in scrap metals has soared as the cost of commodities has been cranked up by the credit crunch, and police say hospitals have suffered power cuts and electricity surges after thieves took copper from insulating cabling.
