Scrap yard owner ordered to close business by MPD

MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- A local scrap yard is in hot water for accepting stolen decorative sidewalk gates and is being forced to close for 90 days as a result of the infraction.

According to police, warnings were issued to the owner of H&R but no changes were made. Now, his business with the public is shut down for three months.

"You're not going to buy a sewer grate at Menards. You're not going to buy those cast iron grates that go around trees at Lowe's and Home Depot," said Jeff Thiele, Milwaukee police officer.

However, you will see those things all around the city. Manholes are in the roads, grates, around trees, on sidewalks, and light poles that stand above both. But, these items are also being found in places where they shouldn't be--the scrap yard.

"Some of the scrap yards were taking scrap from people without using, at the very least, an ID card," said Thiele.

Thiele says one of those places this is happening at is H&R Scrap on the city's northwest side, a business he's been dealing with since 2006.

"We went and did an investigation and found that they were taking things, scrap metal from the public, regulated items without reporting into NUPERS, which is our electronic reporting system," said Thiele.

Attorney, Michael Maistelman, represents Reuben Katz, the owner of H&R, who's had the business for nearly 50 years.

"Truckloads of scrap came in. Mixed with that were objects that appear to be from the city of Milwaukee, unbeknownst to him," said Maistelman.

"The police apparently ran a sting operation knowing that they had these city of Milwaukee sewer grates and what not and then came in and busted him," said Maistelman.

This resulted in Katz's business license to be suspended for 90 days.

"He made a decision not to fight the city. He's remorseful for how this unfolded," said Maistelman.

But this type of thing isn't exclusive to H&R. Milwaukee police are cracking down on the issue all over the city.

"They're like the end part of the game. If I can get rid of the unscrupulous people, it makes it harder for bad guys to get rid of their stuff," said Thiele.

Police say that in the fall of 2011, they came to H&R to show Katz what he was doing wrong. They followed it up with a written explanation.

However, he failed to make the proper changes and is now out of business for 90 days, something he's not fighting.