Thieves have stolen nearly a tonne of metal cans worth $1,352 from a US recycling centre.
It had taken about two months to collect the more than 20,000 cans, which had been crushed into seven rectangular bales. The lock on the gate at the entrance was cut and a large truck or trailer backed up to the building. The seven bales, each weighing an average of approximately 250 pounds, were loaded up and hauled away after the facility had closed. Police have checked with area scrap metal dealers to see if the stolen cans have turned up. The supervisor says it was the first time he's heard about thieves stealing cans from a recycling centre. The cans are profitable because they're considered a clean metal; they have no other metals mixed in. The aluminium cans sell for about $1,600 a tonne and are often referred to as the "golden egg of commodities." In response to the theft, workers are making more frequent trips to a broker to sell the bales of cans so that fewer are kept at the recycling centre and a security camera system has been requested.
"Die verbotene Zone liegt am Ende einer Sackgasse im Hafen von Hamburg-Harburg. Frühmorgens, wenn die Hebekräne noch wie dunkle Schatten in die Dämmerung ragen, rollen die ersten Lastwagen an. Über Funk müssen sich die Fahrer identifizieren, erst dann öffnet sich das Gittertor und gibt den Weg zum Lager frei. Hier ist Sperrgebiet: Die Eingänge werden von Kameras überwacht, Alarmanlagen sichern das Gebäude. Die Heckklappen der Lastwagen sind versiegelt, so kostbar ist ihre Fracht. Aber die Transporter haben keine Goldbarren geladen – sondern Dosen. Leere Dosen."