Two arrested in theft of manhole covers in Elgin

[sherri m head]

Thanks to a driving faux pas, Elgin police hope they have solved a spate of sewer grate and manhole cover thefts from city streets.

On Dec. 22, police pulled over a 33-year-old Lake in the Hills woman after she failed to use a turn signal.

Authorities say they found 11 manhole covers in her car, eventually leading to charges against her and a 50-year-old homeless man.

John Loetes, Elgin's public works director, said dozens of manhole covers and sewer grates have been stolen from various locations around town off and on for about a year.

"Not only does this create a liability for us; it costs a heck of a lot of money to replace them," he said. "I'm hoping this is the group and now the problem will go away."

Sherri M. Head, of 1405 Monroe St., was charged last week with felony theft of 17 sewer grates, Elgin police spokeswoman Ann Dinges said.

William D. Sheppard, who is listed in court documents as homeless but has a last known address in Lake in the Hills, also faces the same charges, which carry a 2- to 5-year prison term upon conviction.

Both are being held at the Kane County jail.

"The whole thing started back in December with reports of missing sewer grates," Dinges said.

Stealing metal and reselling it at a scrap yard is common.

Copper fetches $2 a pound and is most commonly targeted at construction sites. Aluminum lands about 50 cents a pound.

But cast iron won't get you much bang for your backache.

Authorities estimate each sewer grate or manhole cover, which weigh 50 pounds or more, netted just $5 to $6 but ran up a $100 replacement bill for the city at each location.

During the traffic stop, Head told police she found the covers the same day while cleaning a friend's farm in Marengo.

Police later obtained a warrant for her and Sheppard's arrest after recovering 77 sewer grates from a scrap metal yard along Bluff City Boulevard in Elgin.

Another 43 grates were property of the 700-plus home Highland Woods subdivision being built on Elgin's far west side off Route 20, Loete said.

Head and Sheppard were charged with the thefts Tuesday, but it is not their first brush with the law.

According to court records, Sheppard has convictions for possession of a controlled substance in 1998 and obstructing justice in 2007, along with a number of traffic tickets.

Head has a pending case from a 2006 arrest in Elgin for possession of a controlled substance and was charged with burglary from a Dec. 30 incident in Elgin.

According to court records, she and a 17-year-old entered a home along Pautucket Lane in the Providence subdivision on Elgin's far west side with cable cutters, bolt cutters, gloves and a flashlight.

It was unclear what, if anything, was stolen, police said.

Head is due in court Feb. 8 and Sheppard is due in court Wednesday.