Lawmakers in South Carolina are pointing out what seems to be a disturbing trend for metal thieves to begin stealing copper as the metal becomes more and more valuable on the worldwide market.

There have been a string of copper thefts throughout the Midlands and South Carolina areas, with churches, famrs, homes and businesses all being affected.

Such crimes include the vandalisation of air conditioning units to get at the copper components inside and many are now calling for an increased punishment for copper thieves.

The trend is likely to become more ubiquitous as the value of copper reaches an all-time high level on the world’s commodity markets.