SAN FRANCISCO, CA – Residents in San Francisco’s Bernal Heights neighborhood are facing a bizarre double whammy: a serial thief is stealing sewer grates right off the sidewalks, and the city is sticking the victims with the repair bills.
Caught On Camera
The strange thefts were captured on a neighborhood door camera around 3:00 a.m. on June 6. The surveillance footage shows a suspect wearing a headlamp and carrying multiple bags calmly walking up to a sidewalk sewer vent behind a porta-potty.
Within just 20 seconds, the individual lifts the heavy metal grate and walks away into the night.
A Dangerous Neighborhood Hazard
Local residents say the missing grates have turned the sidewalks into a safety hazard for everyone in the community.
“My little dog could step in it. I could fall, trip and fall, any of us could do that,” Bernal Heights resident Sheila told reporters. Neighbors remain baffled by the motive, questioning whether the heavy metal covers are being stolen for scrap metal profit or some sort of art project.
City Cites The Victims
Frustrated neighbors contacted city authorities hoping for help in tracking down the thief or getting the hazards fixed. Instead, property owners received official city citations ordering them to replace the missing grates immediately at their own expense.
Under local codes, property owners are often held responsible for the maintenance of the sidewalks directly in front of their homes, leaving these theft victims on the hook for thousands of dollars in city-mandated repairs.
