Less than one month after an Oklahoma FM tower was toppled to loot for copper wire and tubing, an Alabama station owner is reporting an even more shocking story – his entire 200-foot tower was stolen.
Brett Elmore, who owns WJLX in Jasper, posted news of the theft on social media.
The incident was discovered early in the morning by a landscaping crew tasked with cleaning the Walker County property in preparation for further work. Upon arrival, they found the tower site’s building vandalized and the towering structure completely missing, having had its guy wires cut and the entire frame removed from the premises.
The theft has prompted an investigation by the Jasper Police Department, given the severity and bizarre nature of the crime. Elmore pointed out that it is a federal crime to tamper with any government-licensed facility.
As mentioned, the crime mirrors the recent destruction of the tower for Payne Media Group’s KITX along the Oklahoma/Texas border that received national attention.
Risk electrocution, and felony prosecution, for $100 worth of copper? No thanks.
This station was “secretly silent” for almost five years with no silent STA as the “owner” simply chose to originate programming on the translator (W268BM) while not operating the AM station. This makes it easy (and convenient when inspectors are on the way and insurance money is needed) for something like this to happen.