WINDHAM – A copper theft that occurred at 137 Brand Road last weekend has the potential to result in thousands of dollars in replacement costs, said Windham Officer Ernie MacVane, Wednesday.

MacVane said suspects have yet to be identified in the case, but that he has been receiving calls related to the investigation that are helpful.

“We made a plea to the public to keep an eye out for certain vehicles,” MacVane said. “We have received some calls on vehicles [we’re] following up on.”

At 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 14, Windham police and members of the Windham Fire Department were called to the scene of the propane leak on Brand Road off Route 115. It took firefighters about a half-hour to control the leak and remove the propane gas from the vacant home, according to police.

So far, witnesses have identified two vehicles seen in the area and possibly connected to the burglary, including a silver mini-van-style vehicle operated by a blonde female in her mid-20s and a dark blue, older model Jeep with a broken rear window and a missing backup mirror, MacVane said.

After searching the residence, police discovered that the home was subject to a burglary and that copper pipes had been cut and removed from throughout the residence, he said.

During the process, Windham police said it appears that the perpetrators severed a propane line, filling the home with the explosive gas, which MacVane said had the potential to be “deadly.”

“It was a reckless crime and will probably be added into the list of charges when we identify suspects,” MacVane said. “The potential for death in this particular scenario was very likely. We just saw what happened in Yarmouth a few months ago. Certainly, this scenario was painted with the same recipe for disaster.”

MacVane is still gathering information from the homeowner and working on collecting an inventory of the amount of copper that was harvested from the home.

According to MacVane, the homeowners discovered the propane leak when they visited the vacated home to do property maintenance.

As of Wednesday, MacVane said police have not determined how much copper was stolen, but he estimated the total damage would cost thousands of dollars.

“Not only do they have to replace the copper, the cost of replacing the copper, plumbing and heating, as well as hiring a contractor to do it, he is going to lose on being able to rent it out for however long the property is under repair,” MacVane said.

The perpetrators appeared to have fled the scene in a hurry, leaving behind their tools and “several feet” of harvested copper, he said.

“From that we are able to collect certain biological DNA [evidence] that is going to help us in the furtherance of this case,” MacVane said.

Anyone with information related to the investigation are asked to contact MacVane at 892-1919, ext. 4420.