October 09, 2008                                                                                                                                                                                       

Paducah Man Arrested for Stealing Special Metals (Copper) from Recycling Company

River Metals Recycling of 4265 Moody Road in Paducah contacted the McCracken County Sheriff's Department on Wednesday October 08 to report suspected thefts of valuable metals (used radiators) from their business.

The business reported that on several occasions recently, used radiators that had been sold to the recycling company had been stolen. They then began to suspect that a seller of scrap metal had been bringing to the company and selling them (what they suspected) as being the same radiators that had been stolen from their business. After realizing this, the business began marking the radiators in a manner in which they would be able to identify ones that they had already purchased. As the thefts continued, some of the marked radiators began being brought back in to the Recycling Company by the same suspect, being sold back to them.

In an effort to further investigate the thefts, Sheriff's deputies on late Wednesday afternoon after the business closed, set up surveillance on the recycling business in an effort to catch and apprehend anyone that may be stealing the radiators from the business.

Plainclothes sheriff's deputies Tom Crabtree and Sgt. J.T. Coleman at about 6:30PM, observed the suspect (Larry Chalk) enter a fenced in area of the business that is marked at "POSTED" making several trips to a gated area inside on the fenced in property carrying coils of copper wire. He was then after stacking several coils of copper wire, observed shoving them underneath the gate where they could be hauled away. As the suspect attempted to crawl back underneath the fence to exit the property, he was confronted and apprehended by sheriff's deputies and was immediately arrested.

He did immediately acknowledge to the deputies that he was "caught in the act."
Several of the earlier sales of metal to the business by this suspect were video taped. Additional charges are possible against this suspect and other suspects are being looked at by the sheriff's department.

Surveillance of this and other area recycling businesses by deputies will continue.

Arrested: Chalk, Larry D.  127 Walker Avenue Paducah, Ky (Is located within seeing distance of the Recycling location.)
Charges: Theft of Property Valued at Over $300
              Criminal Trespass 2nd Degree

Mr. Chalk was transported and lodged at the McCracken County Regional Jail.

End of Release

Thanks,
Sheriff Jon Hayden
McCracken Co. Sheriff's Department