Police use tear gas to flush copper wire theft suspect from manhole in Chatsworth

Copper wire theft suspect found in manhole

Police took one suspect into custody, but the second suspect refused to come out of the manhole.

LOS ANGELES - Police arrested two copper wire theft suspects early Tuesday morning following an hours-long standoff in Los Angeles.

What we know:

The incident began around 2 a.m. when officers were called to the 20400 block of Germaine Street, north of Mason Park, in Chatsworth, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

At the scene, officers found two people who went down a manhole in an alleged attempt to steal copper wire, police said. 

One suspect surrendered to officers immediately, but the second person refused to come out of the manhole despite police orders. 

This led to a standoff, which forced authorities to deploy tear gas canisters into the manhole around 6 a.m. The second suspect then left the manhole and surrendered to police.

What we don't know:

Authorities have not yet released the names of the two suspects or specified the charges they will face beyond the initial suspicion of theft.

It's unclear if any copper was successfully removed or if the attempt resulted in outages for neighbors in the area. 

What's next:

The LAPD is investigating the extent of the attempted theft. 

The agency will also determine whether these individuals are connected to the recent surge in copper and utility wire thefts reported across the San Fernando Valley.