[StBernard] St. Bernard cops: Thieves steal $40, 000 in copper, sell it for $5, 000

[Westley Annis]

St. Bernard cops: Thieves steal $40,000 in copper, sell it for $5,000
by The Times-Picayune 
Friday May 16, 2008, 10:05 AM
Two St. Bernard Parish men have been booked with stealing $40,000 worth of
copper, one of the largest such cases in a parish hammered by post-Hurricane
Katrina metal thefts. 

The St. Bernard Parish Sheriff's Office said the two, Clifton Corley, 24,
and Lester Nunez Jr., 21, allegedly sold the pilfered copper as scrap in New
Orleans for $5,000. 

Corley, of 1716 Linda Lou Drive, eastern St. Bernard Parish, and Nunez, of
1900 Linda Lou Drive, were booked Wednesday with felony theft and probation
violation, the sheriff's office said. 

Both remain in custody in St. Bernard Parish Prison. Nunez's bond was set at
$100,000. Bond had not been set for Corley late Thursday, the sheriff's
office said.

The men allegedly stole around 1,800 feet of copper from a Bayou Road
address in eastern St. Bernard Parish in February, the sheriff's office
said. Investigators believe they sold it to a New Orleans scrap metal
business.

The scrap business was not identified. 

Copper and metal thefts have plagued St. Bernard Parish since Hurricane
Katrina, as thieves have struck homes and businesses struggling to rebuild.
The number of abandoned homes and businesses have also made for attractive
targets, authorities said. 

Chief Deputy James Pohlmann said the Bayou Road theft was "one of the
largest since the storm.'' 

Additional arrests could be possible in the case.