Copper wire thieves usually go for the wire in streetlights or old buildings.
Now it's telephone wire, and ATT reports 12 cases of cable theft since the end of June in Stockton.
Stockton Police Officer Joe Silva says the thieves are striking in the early morning hours or late at night when it's dark and climbing the poles to steal the wire.
"We've seen it as small as 4 feet to going up all the way to over 100 feet," says Silva. "So it's definitely varying in size and just based on what these thieves can get their hands on."
In two cases the wire thefts caused power outages to businesses and neighborhoods.
Silva says investigators are checking with local recyclers for the stolen wire.
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