WSB-TV spoke with a homeowner who watched the theft unfold while out to dinner. Two men pulled into the driveway with a truck, took the a/c unit “within six to seven minutes,” and took off.  

The replacement was around $3,000, and the thieves likely made about $30 or $40 in scrap.  

In another case, thieves hit a southeast Atlanta complex, stealing a/c units and leaving some vulnerable families to slug it through the intense heat of a Georgia summer.  

Fox 5 Atlanta reports the thieves hit at least six units before apartment maintenance workers discovered they had been stripped for condensers and copper.  

While the two aforementioned cases remain unsolved, in South Fulton, Ga., a surveillance camera and some vigilant neighbors caught thieves in the act of stealing a/c components, which ended in a high-speed chase and four arrests.  

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A neighbor had seen a slow-moving van moving through the area before 5 a.m., and called police, who intercepted the vehicle. However, the thieves refused to yield, hit the highway, and were eventually stopped when police deployed a PIT maneuver.  

In another incident, thieves decided to get a little more up-close-and-personal and take their criminal acts indoors.  

On July 6, two women broke into an Atlanta home and threatened homeowners with a gun while one stole copper from the a/c.  

In this case, the police were able to apprehend the female duo and actually found a receipt in the car from a local recycling center totaling $44.  

One of the impacted homeowners had some advice to other Atlanta residents, telling WSB-TV that it’s worth extra money to have a/c units locked up.  

This is where Ornamental Security enters this story.  

In a now-viral Instagram reel, owner Chris Welch is seen showing off their heavy-duty steel cages that can be purchased to protect against theft.  

Speaking with WSB-TV, Chris Welch said he has never gotten this many calls since getting into business in 1992.