Sequim Police continue to investigate two series of costly copper wire thefts in the city.

Deputy police chief Mike Hill said the first incident was reported on Oct. 22 and the second on Oct. 29, both causing thousands of dollars in loss and repair. A specific dollar amount stolen was unavailable, he said.

One theft took place inside a building under construction at an unspecified location in the city, and multiple thefts from light posts on the 400 block of West Bell Street, he said.

“(The thief or thieves) broke into the light fixtures with the wire running underground,” Hill said.

“Since then, public works (crews) welded everything shut. Before, (the lights were) secured with a key and they were broken open.”

Copper theft is not a common occurrence in the city, Hill said, with the most recent, sizable theft when Grocery Outlet was being constructed about 10 years ago.

There are no suspects at this time, Hill said.

The thefts are also hard to track because the copper is sold out of county with little to trace back to its original location, he said.

Police canvassed for surveillance video in the area and increased patrols while encouraging construction businesses to secure job sites.

Det. Sgt. Darrell Nelson said the incidents remain under investigation and they’ve begun to sort incoming tips.

hose who see suspicious persons and/ or vehicles are encouraged to contact the Sequim Police Department at 360-683-7227.

Robbery remains under investigation

Nelson said police continue to investigate an Oct. 22 robbery at the Sequim Smoke Shop, 548 W. Washington St. The shop’s staff said in an interview that an individual went into the store, indicated he had a firearm, threatened an employee, and took more than $900.

In a previous interview, police said they have a suspect in mind.

Mischief reported at high school

Staffers at Sequim High School, 601 N. Sequim Ave., reported malicious mischief on Nov. 2 to police after discovering damage in the agricultural and automotive departments.

Nelson said some of the damage — believed to occur some time the night or early morning before the call to police —included a skeleton from the school placed on a school building’s roof, damage to vehicles in the automotive shop, and a rabbit let out of a cage in the agricultural building.

Three high school boys confessed to the damages with charges of malicious mischief sent to the Clallam County Prosecutor’s office, Nelson said.

A cost estimate was not known, he said, and because they are juveniles their ages and grades were not released.