Thieves ripped out and stole more than 4 miles of copper wire worth $96,000 from 15 street lamps on H-2 Freeway over the weekend, according to police and the state Department of Transportation.

Twenty stands of No. 2 gauge copper wire measuring 24,000 feet were stolen from the light posts. A stand is the distance between two light poles and six strands of copper wire connect each stand.

A state Department of Transportation road crew doing routine maintenance discovered ripped-out lines, chopped-up plastic insulation, and poll boxes with their lids torn off yesterday.

The darkened stretch covers H-2 southbound lanes from the Ka Uka Boulevard on-ramp halfway to the Waiawa interchange. The area has been hit repeatedly in the last two years following the replacement of some of the wires, police said.

Honolulu police opened a first degree theft case yesterday.

"We are concerned about the thefts but what is really troubling is that the thefts are affecting the welfare and safety of the community," said Honolulu police Capt. Frank T. Fujii.

The theft is the third major copper heist reported in the past five months.

Scott Ishikawa, spokesman for the state Department of Transportation, said state deputy sheriffs working with DOT found some of the ripped out stands late Friday and filed an initial report.

"Unfortunately, these areas they are hitting are in no man's land. We don't have this problem on the freeways in town," Ishikawa said. "We've been working with law enforcement. It's difficult to replace the wire only to see it ripped out again."

Ishikawa said the department is reviewing alternative freeway lighting technologies.

On Dec. 21, a repair crew inspecting freeway lights discovered the most significant copper theft reported in recent memory after thieves made off with almost 6 miles of wire from fixtures between Kunia and Makakilo.

The 30,240 feet of copper wire is valued at $120,960 and was taken from lights that were already out after copper thieves stole portions of the wire earlier last year.

The wiring connected 14 light fixtures in the east- and west-bound lanes of H-1 Freeway between Kunia and Makakilo.

On Nov. 29, a DOT repair crew discovered that someone had stolen 1,350 feet of copper wire worth $5,450 from the lighting system along the H-1 Freeway in Waikele.

The wiring powered more than two dozen highway lights along the westbound lanes from Waikele to the Kunia exit. The area is now dark at night.

Police and sheriff's deputies say a loosely affiliated group has been stealing copper from lighting fixtures along H-1 in Kapolei and H-2 near Ka Uka Boulevard.

Some of the cases clearly point to the use of sophisticated machinery and techniques.

Miles of copper wire have been disappearing from light fixtures along state freeways for nearly two years, and large stretches of freeway remain dark at night.

Copper theft has been on the rise, with criminals also stealing from schools, parks, homes and the Honolulu International Airport.

Losses in copper-theft cases reported to Honolulu police in 2006 and 2007 surpassed $920,000, police have said. Estimates at repairing the damage done by copper thieves to state roads exceed $1 million.

It is a felony to steal a pound or more of copper, and scrap recyclers are required to check the identity of anyone trying to sell copper. They also must get a signed statement from the seller — usually on the receipt — saying the seller has the right to sell the copper.

Recyclers who violate the statutes face a misdemeanor charge, punishable by up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine.

Reach Peter Boylan at pboylan@honoluluadvertiser.com.