Man Caught on CCTV Stealing Lightning Rod Cable from Denpasar Boarding House
A man stole lightning rod cables from a boarding house on Jalan Tukad Balian, Renon, Denpasar. The criminal act was captured by the boarding house’s closed-circuit television (CCTV). Based on the footage, the theft occurred on Tuesday (22/09/2026) at 11:00 WITA.
The surveillance footage shows the perpetrator acting alone. The man appeared to be wearing a black hoodie and a hat; however, he was not wearing a face mask, leaving his face clearly visible.
The owner of the boarding house, Rico, stated that he sensed something was wrong when he noticed his CCTV camera appeared tilted. Upon checking the recordings, he was shocked to see a stranger entering the boarding house area and cutting the cables.
“Because I was curiously checking the CCTV after noticing it was tilted, I checked immediately and found someone carrying cables,” Rico told detikBali.
Rico then personally inspected the condition of the building. Indeed, 15 metres of copper lightning rod cable, which originally stretched from the first to the fourth floor of the boarding house, had vanished.
“My boarding house has four floors; the cable was cut from the second floor, and then he broke into the fourth floor to cut the upper section,” Rico explained.
According to Rico, following the incident, one of the residents had previously spotted a stranger loitering around the boarding house area the day before.
Rico noted that residents and owners often find it difficult to identify perpetrators using this modus operandi. This is because if confronted or questioned, the perpetrators usually claim they are looking for a room to rent.
“People like this, when asked, usually answer that they want to view the boarding house; it is difficult to distinguish a thief from a legitimate visitor,” Rico complained.
As a result of this incident, Rico suffered losses of nearly Rp 1 million. Fortunately, no other belongings of the residents were stolen.
Despite possessing CCTV evidence, Rico does not yet plan to report the theft to the police. However, he advised other boarding house owners and residents, particularly in Denpasar, to remain vigilant regarding suspicious strangers.