GLENDALE, AZ — Copper wire thieves have left a Glendale park and other spaces in the dark, causing frustration for the community and costly repairs for the city.
Glendale police are investigating at least ten cases of property destruction at parks, schools, and construction sites, where police say criminals have cut lighting systems to steal copper wiring.
Assistant Parks and Recreation Director Mike Keane says Paseo Park is among the targets, with all its lights knocked out, rendering the popular softball and Little League hub unusable during peak evening hours.
"It is useless damage," Keane said. "They are not getting that much of a product out of what they are doing, so it's just causing havoc."
Contractors are now working to restore power, but the process is slow and expensive. Workers must first untangle the vandalized wiring and determine which lines power which lights before they can make repairs.
According to Arizona scrap yard websites, stripped copper wire can fetch up to $3.50 per pound. However, Keane believes the thieves likely made little profit from the damage.
"There's miles and miles of wire," Keane explained. "Fortunately, they didn’t take the wire—it was really just damage."
Glendale police say the Paseo Park incident is part of a broader trend, with similar crimes reported at baseball fields, schools, and construction sites across the Valley.
Sergeant Brian Hoskin, with Glendale Police Department, says he hasn’t seen this type of widespread copper theft in years but suspects those responsible may be driven by addiction and a need for quick cash.
"I don’t know who is committing these crimes," Hoskin said. "But in the past, it has been people who maybe have some sort of addiction who need quick money to get a fix."
Glendale is not alone. Similar copper thefts have been reported in Ahwatukee, where a baseball field was left in the dark, and in Peoria, where a mother says the outage put a last-minute halt to her child's sports season.
"All of the kids aren’t going to be able to play their games this weekend," said one Peoria parent in February. "My son was very disappointed when he heard the news."
Glendale police are working closely with other departments to track down suspects and prevent further damage. Authorities warn that if these crimes continue unchecked, thieves could start targeting residential neighborhoods.
"They eventually make their way from construction sites or commercial buildings or schools… and start mingling into neighborhoods," Sgt. Hoskin cautioned.
In response to the thefts, city officials are considering installing protective cages around electrical boxes and increasing night patrols. Meanwhile, some parks are beginning to recover.
Following community concerns and ABC15’s coverage, the lights at Ahwatukee’s baseball fields have been restored.
Peoria’s Paloma Park and the Paseo Park tennis courts are also back online, but full restoration across affected areas could take weeks.
