By Emmanuel T. Erediano
Variety News Staff

ABOUT 20 copper wire thefts have been reported on Tinian since last year and most of these incidents affected business establishments, according to a Department of Public Safety official there.
It was also last year that two Saipan recycling firms branched out to Tinian.
DPS-Tinian Director Michael H. San Nicolas said he has yet to revisit his files to get the exact details on the copper wire theft incidents which, he added, became rampant last year.
Saipan Triple Star Recycling, Inc. opened a branch in Marpo Valley on Tinian on Oct. 30, 2006.
HJ Corp. also opened a branch on Tinian on the same date they established a facility on Saipan on Nov. 16, 2006
San Nicolas said one of the water pumps at the Commonwealth Utilities Corp. in Marpo Valley became inoperable when unidentified suspects cut the cable connecting the water facility to its power source several weeks ago.
San Nicolas said that in the latest incident two weeks ago, the operation of a bottled water company was interrupted when unknown suspects cut and stole wire from its power source.
Copper wire thefts on Saipan became rampant last year, which also saw the opening of four more recycling firms on island.
These new recycling firms on Saipan are KP/Man’s Joint Venture in Tanapag; New Pacific International Trading Co. Inc. and Pacific Century Inc., both in Chalan Kanoa; and HJ Corp. in San Jose.
The six other recycling firms that have been doing business on Saipan since at least 2000 are Great Pacific Refuse and Recycling Center in Garapan, Huang Zheng Corp. Ltd., in Puerto Rico, KP Company Limited in Lower Base; Ericco Enterprises in Lower Base, R&CA Corp. in China Town, and Saipan Triple Star in As Perdido.
So far, only one of these recycling firms — Huang Zheng Corp., — has been implicated in copper wire theft. Its owner, Quan Huang, has been arrested for buying stolen copper wire.