Saunders County farmers offer rewards to stop copper thefts

WAHOO, Neb. (AP) — Saunders County authorities and area farmers are teaming up to try and stop thieves from stealing copper from center pivot irrigation systems.

Sheriff Kevin Stukenholtz said Thursday that Crime Stoppers and several farmers are offering cash rewards of up to $1,500 for information that leads to arrests, the Omaha World-Herald reported.

Stukenholtz said several farmers near Yutan have reported damage to their irrigation systems but the thefts are occurring across the county.

“It’s very frustrating, because some farmers have been victimized more than once,” Stukenholtz said. “We’re just hopeful that some of these (thieves) have associates who may be inclined to give us some leads for cash rewards.”

The sheriff said many copper thieves are drug users who sell the metal to scrap dealers. He urged scrap dealers to question where the copper came from before buying it.