KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The Lake County Sheriff’s Office is asking for the community's help in identifying two people of interest in a theft last month at a Kelseyville property.

The two subjects were captured by surveillance video, according to Lt. Steve Brooks. Stills from the video are shown above and below.

On Thursday, June 27, a sheriff’s deputy was dispatched to the 8700 block of Soda Bay Road in Kelseyville for a reported vandalism and theft, Brooks said.

The victim reported that a lock to his property was cut and some property was stolen, Brooks said.

The date and time stamp of the surveillance stills provided by Brooks indicate the subjects were at the property shortly before 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, June 26.

The suspects in this crime also appeared to attempt a theft of copper wire and pipes from the property, according to Brooks.

Copper and other metal theft has reached epidemic problems both within the US and globally, Brooks reported.

According to the US Department of Energy, copper theft is a $1 billion problem.

Metal theft is on the rise due to increased motivation and opportunity. Brooks said motivation is fueled by high metal prices based on significant international demand for metals such as copper. Opportunity exists in many places as there are large amounts of unsecured metal that is in high demand.

Meth and other drug users have been capitalizing on this demand, the availability of these metals and the weak regulations around the resale of metal to create a means of supporting their habits, Brooks said.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office is working to stop this cycle of metal theft, which is sometimes used to support drug abuse.

If you have information on the suspects in the above photos or other leads related to metal thefts, please contact the Lake County Sheriff’s Office at 707-263-2690.