A Chinese father-and-son duo were being questioned by police officers at the time of going to press about a 40-foot container containing stolen copper wire which was earmarked for shipment to China.
Antigua Public Utilities Authority (APUA), LIME, Customs and the police intercepted the men at Deep Water Harbour with the stolen copper cables and air conditioning units, said to be worth tens of thousands of dollars.
Representatives of both telecommunications companies have reportedly identified their property among the contraband.
The operation was executed just 24 hours before the container was scheduled for shipment, at about 9 am Friday.
Lawmen are now searching for the so-called dealers who provided the duo with the stolen copper.
A source close to the probe who requested anonymity said the duo provided a number of transaction receipts as proof that they bought four tonnes of copper cables from two local dealers, for almost EC ,000.
This newspaper spoke to one of the men being questioned. He said one more payment was outstanding before the copper was shipped to China for recycling.
While he declined to provide further information, the younger of the two being questioned said his father has been trading in copper for almost three years.
The container in which the stolen copper was stored reportedly arrived from St Kitts about two weeks ago, with about 12 tonnes of the item, as well as stainless steel material.
Reports indicate the businessmen bought the additional material, bringing the weight to 20 tonnes, to get maximum benefit of the Chinese taxing policy.
(Source http://www.antiguaobserver.com/?p=69863)
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