5 arrested, $147K in stolen copper from Kennecott recovered
Sep 14, 2024, 6:00 PM | Updated: 6:57 pm
Crews load recovered copper into a truck after the Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office says it was stolen from the Kennecott mine. In all, deputies recovered $147,000 in stolen copper and arrested five people. (Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office)
(Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office)
SOUTH SALT LAKE — Over 10,000 pounds of stolen copper was recovered Thursday as part of an investigation that began at the Rio Tinto Kennecott mine.
The investigation started when an 8,600-pound copper mold, valued at $55,000, was reported stolen on Sept. 6, according to the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
On Tuesday, Finaulahi Vailala, 36, and Duc Bui, 35 were arrested after being caught on security cameras driving a Ford F-350 with a flatbed trailer past the mine’s security checkpoint and onto the property, according to police booking affidavits.
Once on the property, they grabbed another Kennecott flatbed truck and drove both into a scrap metal area, using a forklift to load metal pieces, the byproduct of a copper smelting process, valued at around $25,000, the affidavits allege.
Officers set up at the exit to the mining property and said they watched as the men drove past them. Police say Bui ditched his vehicle and fled on foot but was arrested; Vailala was stopped farther away and taken into custody as well.
Both men were booked into the Salt Lake County Jail for investigation of burglary and theft. Vailala was also held on suspicion of criminal trespassing, while Bui was held for investigation of receiving stolen property.
The investigation continued, leading police to Ortiz Metal Processing in Salt Lake City.
“A nearby metal recycling plant who contracts with the mine called after Ortiz Metal recycling attempted to sell them one of the copper molds,” according to a police booking affidavit.
Responding officers found more than 10,000 pounds of stolen copper at the location, the sheriff’s office says, and the facility owner Fabian Oritz, 49, was arrested on Thursday.
