He could have broke into an abandon home and stole all the copper while keeping a roof over his head while he is doing it.
We had a house at the end of the block that had been renovated a few years ago. It was only vacant for a few months. The neighbors noticed water gushing out - someone had ripped out all the pipes - ruining the new wood floors, etc.
I met a guy that I saw a couple of times at a job site. They came by the dumpster and picked up the metal left by the side. I was talking to the guy and he said “Yeah - I used to be homeless. Now I have a house that I rent with guys, and own two trucks (the one I saw was worth maybe $600 - but still!) working to pick up scrap. Most of it is from shops that I have talked to and they leave it out for me. Others is just picking up crap that I see that has been tossed.”