For months, 7 On Your Side Investigates has looked into the copper wire thefts plaguing neighborhoods in Southern California. Throughout that time, we've been trying to get to the bottom of where the stolen metal is going.

We finally got some answers.

When copper is stolen, it can end up in places such as an alleged illegal scrapyard operation in a residential neighborhood.

At an early morning raid at a home in Lynwood, sheriff's investigators brought Eyewitness News along to show us the copper and other metals.

They said someone was dealing with scrap metal in his backyard.

"So we've got a few bags of communication wire. This communication wire happens to be burn as in they lit a fire to burn the insulation off. We've got some other structural wire.. this looks to be stripped down

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