A trio of alleged copper thieves who scampered up the rain-slick side of the Pali Tunnels on Sunday to snip copper wiring were caught with high-end wire cutters and testing equipment that would let them know whether the wires were live or safe to cut.

It was the latest incident in a series of thefts of copper wiring, copper plumbing and other copper materials that have cost the state Department of Transportation alone more than $300,000 in just 18 months and left miles of O'ahu freeways in the dark.

"The good news was that the copper was not connected to our existing lighting system on the Pali Tunnels, so there was no damage to our existing lights, and we won't have to pay for repairs," said Scott Ishikawa, spokesman for the state Department of Transportation. "But our concern is someone's going to try and pull a stunt like this again and get themselves electrocuted."

A hiker saw two men and a woman underneath the raised portion of the Pali Highway on the Kailua side, near a runaway truck ramp, just before 1 p.m. Sunday.

He hiked down to the Pali Lookout, borrowed a cell phone and called 911. Police dispatchers sent Kalihi police officers, who have nearly all of O'ahu's six metal recyclers in their district and have been making a series of copper-related arrests.

The officers hiked into the area and arrested Michael D. Bryan, 46, Michael Schturngeist, 26, and Elnora Akana, 42, also known as Elnora Margaret Foster. They were later charged with misdemeanor third-degree theft. Bail for each was set at $1,000.

Akana, with seven prior convictions, is the only one of the three listed in Hawai'i Criminal Justice Data Center records. None had a local address, police said.

They were allegedly caught with nine bundles of rolled-up electrical wire, 140 pounds of copper wire valued at $255.60 and gloves. They also allegedly had high-end equipment that was the envy of state Department of Transportation workers who were called to identify the wiring, police and a transportation supervisor said.

"It is slippery and kind of precarious to get up and down there," said police Maj. Kurt Kendro, who supervised a Kalihi patrol officer sting operation of metal recyclers called Full Copper Jacket.

"It is truly dangerous," Kendro said. "But if they're motivated, $250 is a lot of money."

Kendro and Ishikawa hope that more people start reporting suspicious activity.

Last month, a caller dialed 911 and led police to two suspects who allegedly cut 8,000 feet of copper wire that connected light poles along the H-2 Freeway.

But other copper thefts go unnoticed until the damage is apparent.

Last Thursday, sometime between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m., thieves made off with 70 feet of copper piping from the city's memorial graveyard at Judd Street and Nu'uanu Avenue, Kendro said.

The loss was discovered when water was reported pouring through the cemetery.

Honolulu police were able to make arrests and recover the wiring and copper on Sunday because of the hiker, Kendro said.

"We would never patrol underneath the raised portion of the Pali Highway," he said. "The public's cooperation in reporting suspicious circumstances is absolutely essential."

The copper wiring taken Sunday was encased in a pipe and not in use. The thieves left live wires alone, Ishikawa said.

But because the cut copper is valued at less than $300, each suspect faces only misdemeanor charges, Kendro said.

City Prosecutor Peter Carlisle supports a bill in the Legislature that would make copper theft a Class-C felony, plus other bills that would add requirements for metal recyclers who buy copper.

"This is a relatively new criminal enterprise, and the problem is obviously ongoing," Carlisle said. "It is a hot topic, and we need legislatively creative tools."

Copper thefts are difficult to track because they're lumped in with all other theft cases, Kendro and Carlisle said. But with a specific copper-theft statute, law enforcement could better track the crimes, which could help police better deploy manpower and resources, he said.

"Police officers are a precious resource," Carlisle said. "The issue is: Where should manpower in the field be devoted?"

The recyclers have been the focus of police undercover stings that resulted in one misdemeanor and one felony arrest of employees who allegedly agreed to purchase stolen copper.

Sixteen bills — most of them aimed at adding requirements for recyclers — also were introduced in the Legislature this session, and five remain alive.

Jim Banigan, general manager of Schnitzer Steel Hawaii Corp., formerly Hawaii Metal Recycling, sat outside the Legislature yesterday waiting to testify against some of the bills.

Most of the bills that would require recyclers to fingerprint people trying to sell copper have died, Banigan said. But others remain that would, among other things, require sellers to provide a receipt or notarized document authenticating that the seller is the rightful owner of the copper or has the right to sell it.

Banigan also opposes a bill that would require recyclers to photograph copper purchases and keep them on file for two years.

"It's just a waste of time and extra cost to the business," Banigan said. "How can you tell one bin of copper from another?"

Perhaps both police and recyclers will find help not from the Legislature but from people in the community, Banigan said.

"Without a doubt," he said, "if you're stealing copper wire and it creates a public safety hazard, the community has to get more involved. And that's another way to stop it."

Reach Dan Nakaso at dnakaso@honoluluadvertiser.com.