Some 2.5 tonnes of these materials have been identified as SNCF or the Orange company, detailed the prefecture in its press release, released on Tuesday.
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“3.6 tonnes of alleged stolen cables”. The French and Belgian authorities carried out a vast control operation, Tuesday, March 18, in an attempt to stem the scourge of cable flights which disrupts rail and telecoms infrastructure, according to a press release from the North Prefecture. These actions were carried out simultaneously in several cities in the north of France and in Belgium, and have targeted “Companies specializing in metal recycling, sometimes used to sell stolen cables”.
The results are substantial: several suspects have been arrested and some 3.6 tonnes of alleged stolen cables were seized. In detail, in Wattrelos, six kilos of SNCF cables were found. In Mouscron, 1.3 tonnes of stolen copper was intercepted, 450 kilos of which were identified as belonging to the SNCF. In the same place, 207 kilos of copper and 74 kilos of seafood were discovered in two vehicles registered in France. In Lille, the entries reached 1.9 tonnes of burned orange cables and 171 kilos of SNCF aluminum cables.
The operation also got their hands on another type of parallel market. “On the A22/E17 motorway, Belgian road police intercepted a million smuggling cigarettes aboard a van registered in France”reported the police in their press release.
