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they slowly took it apart into scrap
pieces.’
The bridge was built near the border
of Finland in the Arctic region, and
was once a crucial crossing for the
Umba River and an active railway
crossing. It was originally used as a
transport line for a rare-earth ore pro-
cessing plant but was decommis-
sioned when the business filed for
bankruptcy back in 2007.
surge in armed robberies
Metal theft is not only on the rise at
scrapyards but also during long-dis-
tance voyages at sea. Ships passing
through the Singapore Strait have
been actively targeted in recent years,
according to the Asian anti-piracy and
anti-robbery group ReCAAP.
Nine cases of such theft occurred in
the Singapore Strait in the first eight
months of the year with 14 boats tar-
geted. This is the highest number of
incidents ReCAAP has reported since
2011 and it notes there has been a
sharp increase in armed incidents
resulting in serious injuries. Only four
were classified as ‘petty theft’
(unarmed).
In most of the incidents, the perpetra-
tors came alongside the barge and
transferred scrap metal into a fleet of
smaller boats. ReCAAP notes that
these barges are typically carrying
large consignments of scrap. Due to
their heavy loads, the vessels are mov-
ing at slow speed, making them an
easy target for thieves.
Between 2007 and mid-August 2019,
228 incidents involved tugs and barg-
es in Asia of which 98 were in the
Singapore Strait. Of the 228, 14
involved the hijacking of tugs for
resale, 25 were the theft of scrap
metal from barges and the remaining
189 incidents involved robbery of cash
and personal belongings from crews
and other unsecured items.
ReCAAP is calling on states alongside
the waterways to strengthen patrols
and promote the sharing of informa-
tion on the criminal groups involved.
Ship masters and crew are advised to
report immediately every incident, as
well as the presence of suspicious
small boats in the vicinity, to the near-
est coastal state.
reprisal from gangs
Recyclers in Ireland are said to be
experiencing ‘a near crisis’ from metal
scrap theft. Beauparc, which operates
waste services under the Panda,
Greenstar and A1 brand names, says
they are suffering from trespassing,
harassment, threat of violence to both
staff and customers and even arson.
An upgrade in legislation is urgently
needed to tackle the worsening
behaviour of metal scrap thieves,
Beauparc has told Ireland’s Minister
for the Environment Richard Bruton.
The industry is calling for an end to
untraceable cash payments for scrap
38-39-40-41_metaltheft.indd 40 13-11-19 14:29
