LIVE: Company, victim of construction site thefts holds press conference at APD headquarters – KXAN.com

AUSTIN (KXAN) An Austin-based construction company and contractors gathered Thursday at Austin Police Department headquarters and asked APD to create a task force and coordinate with other agencies to solve a series of construction site thefts.

Its not okay. Its not okay for us. Its not okay for my guys. Its definitely not okay for the community, said Eric Perucca, Owner of Hands & Feet Framing and Drywall.

Jon Standley with Motivado Group said he believes the thefts have been ongoing since January 2019, and there have been 36 separate incidents of construction materials stolen from sites.

We have been begging for help daily, but the Mayor and Police Chief are simply not taking this seriously, said Standley. This is a crime wave and these thefts are adding to the cost of building critically needed housing and office space in Austin.

In February, suspects broke into a construction site in broad daylight and stole materials worth close to $100,000. The incident was caught on camera, catching the getaway truck the suspects used. Motivado Group offered a $2,500 reward to anyone who might recognize the truck, or the people in the video, and can help lead police to an arrest.

It is time for the City of Austin to take this seriously, said Standley. If we do not get helpsoon, we will be forced to hire teams of armed guards with directions to protect life andproperty.

Perucca explained, This doesnt affect big businesses. This affects small businesses.

He told KXAN any time someone steals lumber, it creates a domino effect.

Because it can take weeks to replace the material, drywallers, plumbers and electricians who were lined up and ready to go cant work.

These are small time people who are trying to make a living, trying to make their lives work, and they get put on hold for a week, thats a big interruption, he said.

Wayne Dolcefino with Dolcefino Consulting said what the suspects are stealing are entire framing packages of houses. He said, One house framing package could cost $30,000. It gets stolen. It delays that project by weeks. It increases the cost of projects. These folks are building apartments, town homes and homes all across this area.

Standley told KXAN I think this is a systematic problem.

Austin Police said they can confirm at least four cases are related because the same vehicle is used. Other cases remain under investigation.

They said in a statement:

These investigations involve a tremendous amount of research and legwork and those take time. We are actively following up on leads though including partnering with other law enforcement agencies.

We did impound two vehicles from a construction site theft that occurred last night in the 10300 block of IH-35 Svrd SB. Neither of the vehicles is the one seen in the video. There are no individuals that have been identified/arrested as part of this incident.

We also spoke with Scott Turner with Riverside Homes. He said hes dealt with theft issues as well.

We had a home being built. It was completely finished. It was looking good. We had it on the market, ready to go, and someone who knew what they were doing, meaning they were familiar with construction, broke into the house by taking the door off the hinges and then stole the appliance package, Turner said.

He said around the time this happened to him, someone was arrested locally because they found one of the local appliances in a shop in Connecticut.

Turner said when appliances are stolen, it delays the closing process. When materials are stolen, it delays the building process.

Its very frustrating not just for the builders but also homeowners, he said. You have somebody whos ready and excited about their home, theyre ready to move in, and the next thing you know, theyve got a delay, and frankly, its a little unnerving both for the homeowner and the builder. Any time that occurs, it makes you feel a little uneasy and unsafe.

He explained because Austin areas housing supply is so low, if builders cant work and no homes go on sale, the supply would run out in a month.

Everyones doing their best to get their houses built and get homeowners in there as quickly as possible, he said.

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LIVE: Company, victim of construction site thefts holds press conference at APD headquarters - KXAN.com