NEW YORK — A man who allegedly posed as a utility worker and stole as many as 40 cast-iron manhole covers from Brooklyn, Queens and Bronx streets was arrested Wednesday.
Andrew Modica, 46, was charged with criminal possession of stolen property and criminal impersonation, the New York Post reported.
Cops caught Modica driving a stolen pickup truck near his home at 67th Street and 21st Avenue in Brooklyn, according to the Post. They found him by tracking a license plate and parking summonses.
In addition, surveillance-camera footage showed Modica taking a manhole cover from Starr Avenue in Queens on April 22, according to the Post. In the footage, Modica was wearing a reflective yellow vest and had placed a "men at work" sign in the bed of the pickup truck.
Modica admitted to stealing some of the manhole covers, but not all, the Post reported. He said he is addicted to crack, cocaine and heroin, and that he sold the covers to scrapyards.
Each cover weighs about 320 pounds, Con Edison spokesman Allan Drury said. Modica claimed the scrapyards paid 12 1/2 to 15 cents a pound, or up to $48 per cover.
