SCOTT CITY, Mo. (KFVS) - The theft of copper from large equipment, plumbing and wiring has become a $2 billion a year problem in the United States.

Now, AT&T is working with three states, including Missouri, to try and put a stop to it by offering rewards of up to $20,000 for tips that lead to the arrest and conviction of copper thieves.

But copper theft in southeast Missouri is nothing new.

Last summer, Scott City Police Chief Chris Griggs and his department investigated the theft of more than $13,000 worth of copper from railroad property.

He calls it a crime of opportunity.

The Scott City Police Department spent four days monitoring the railroad property. Griggs said investigating copper thefts has its challenges because copper is not hard to find and can be easily concealed an

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