Not unusual these days. Glad one was caught, but probably ten other thieves are happy he’s out of the way too. Here they try to steal gas piping also, and I assume leave the building when the gas odor is too strong or when there’s too much water to wade through.
Copper as gas piping is really antiquated. History has proven that impurities in gas eventually eat through copper, and if used underground can lead to having to dig up yards to replace the lines. Black iron, now used for gas, is hardly worth the trouble to carry it.