Smithfield Police are investigating the theft of about 30 3/8-inch thick, 36-inch square steel plates from the John Rocchio Corporation at 20 Lark Industrial Drive July 1.
At about 7 a.m. that day, SPD Officer Thomas Coleman responded to the business to speak with Joseph Machado, the company's yard manager about the theft. Machado said he'd arrived at the site at about 6 a.m. and discovered the gate unlocked, the usual chain and padlock missing.
Also missing, he said were about 30 steel plates worth $150 each. Each plate also weighed 100 lbs., Machado said. Coleman noted several footprints near the remaining plates and a set of tire tracks leading to the pile. Coleman took photographs of the area.
The owner, John Roccio, arrived and said he had several suspects in mind whose names he would like to share with detectives. He was very interested in several missing galvanized plates, which he said were expensive to make and were precisely engineered for an ongoing bridge project. He said several similar pieces of steel were stolen from the business May 29.
The last employee at the site the previous day left at midnight, according to Coleman's report.
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