We pay an extra five cents for every can we buy in California, with the state paying us back when we recycle them. But crooks are coming to this state to recycle cans that weren't bought here.
They didn't pay the five cents, but they're cashing in. Thousands of pounds of aluminum come across the conveyor at Bruno's Iron & Metal every day.
Most come from recyclers around the Valley, but sometimes, they come from a lot farther away.
"Six months ago, three individuals I believe it was, had three or four bales that came clear from Georgia," said Rick White, Bruno's assistant general manager.
Recycling is big business in California. In most of the U.S., recyclers buy aluminum for between 60 and 70 cents per pound.
In California, it's triple that, between $1.80 and $2.20, because the state pays about $1.50 out of the recycling fund. Those numbers make it tempting for people to bring cans from out of state.
"We've seen several attempts at fraud," said White. "In fact, Tuesday I had an individual come in here and brought us some cans and they were obviously pre-baled, so I denied accepting him."
Surveillance video caught the man driving a white pickup truck into the yard with about 400 pounds of aluminum in his bed.
White called the police when the guy drove away. Calls like that helped police in southern California make a huge bust last month.
They arrested 31 people bringing huge trucks filled with more than a million pounds of cans and bottles from Nevada, Arizona, and Mexico.
Attorney general Jerry Brown says the suspects collected more than $3 million before they got caught.
Now, recyclers are getting wise to the scam "If you have an out-of-state can, there are no markings on that can," said White. "There's nothing that says California CRV on it."
Cans that have already been baled are also suspect.
The crooks have a few tricks to disguise cans that have already been baled, like running them over with a truck. But recyclers have tricks of their own. Most can look at a can and see the signs of previous baling.
