Copper pipes taken from house as residents slept

YOUNGSTOWN — Police are looking for the individuals responsible for ripping the copper piping out of a house while the family was sleeping.

A 38-year-old East Avondale woman told police someone entered her home at 6:30 a.m. Wednesday and went into her basement and began ripping out pipes. The woman said the sounds of pipes banging and large amounts of running water awakened her and her son.

The woman told police she did not see those responsible for the theft, but did see a car pull out of the driveway of an abandoned house next door.

The woman told police that the house is a duplex and the upstairs tenant recently moved out. She also said the cellar door was damaged and allowed for easy access to the basement.