BELLAIRE, Texas – A scrap yard in Bellaire doesn’t have a license, but police said the owner of Bellaire Recycling doesn’t care that he’s operating illegally. This is because the only thing the police can do is issue him a citation. 

Sergeant Mike McGinty of the Houston Police Department said the citations have little or no effect.

“To a lot of them, it’s the cost of business. They're making so much money,” said McGinty.

Frustrated police officers from across Texas have decided to do something about the problem. They plan to talk to lawmakers in Austin in January about tougher penalties. They said if they have to enforce the law, then the scrap yards need to be held accountable. 

HPD said just last week they had to issue Bellaire Recycling another citation after they came across more than one and a half tons of brand new wire. Because Bellaire is a scrap metal business, they are not allowed to buy new material.

After investigating the situation, HPD learned the wire came from a company called Tyco Thermal Controls on Harwin. Tyco claimed the merchandise had been stolen by an employee.  The stolen wire sells for $11 a foot, costing Tyco $356,000 in lost sales.

Albert Villegas, the Tyco employee who allegedly stole the wire, was arrested and charged with felony theft.  His bond has been set at $700,000.

But the owner of Bellaire Recycling who bought the stolen wire wasn’t arrested.  Instead, he was issued another citation, which the police said carried a maximum penalty of $250.