THE DALLES, July 8 — Thieves made off with half a million dollars in copper wiring from a Google data center construction site here in December 2024, a brazen heist that has delayed the tech giant’s massive AI infrastructure expansion by two months. The Wasco County Sheriff’s Office reported that the thieves cut through perimeter fencing over a weekend and removed copper from underground conduits at the site, located 80 miles east of Portland. A Google spokesperson confirmed the theft delayed construction by two months.
The company had announced a $600 million expansion at the facility in 2023, specifically to support AI workloads. Strategically, the theft signals a growing vulnerability in America’s race to build out artificial intelligence computing capacity.
The Dalles site is one of several remote AI data center projects across the Pacific Northwest, including a Microsoft facility in Quincy, Washington, and an Amazon site in Boardman, Oregon. These locations, often in rural areas with limited police presence, present a clear target for organized theft operations.
A Broader Pattern of Targeting
The Oregon State Police documented a 50% increase in construction site thefts across the state in 2024, with copper wiring emerging as the primary target. The calculus for thieves is straightforward: copper prices remain high, and remote construction sites offer minimal security coverage, particularly over weekends. What this signals is a security gap that may require a strategic reassessment by both private industry and local law enforcement.
The Dalles theft is not an isolated incident but part of a broader trend that threatens the timelines of critical infrastructure projects. The remote nature of these sites — deliberately chosen for their access to cheap hydropower and fiber optic networks — also makes them harder to police.
The $500,000 loss at the Google site represents more than just stolen materials. The two-month construction delay carries its own costs in a competitive industry where time-to-market for AI computing capacity is a strategic advantage. Every month of delay means delayed revenue and delayed capability for Google’s AI services.
What to Watch Next
The question now is whether the industry and law enforcement will adapt their security posture. With a 50% rise in construction site thefts statewide, the pattern suggests organized criminal networks have identified a lucrative and relatively low-risk target. The broader stakes involve not just the financial losses but the strategic timeline of America’s AI infrastructure buildout.
For The Dalles, a small Columbia River Gorge community that has hosted major data center operations for years, the theft is a reminder that even the most advanced technology projects remain vulnerable to old-fashioned crime. The Wasco County Sheriff’s Office continues its investigation, but the remote location and the time elapsed before discovery make arrests challenging.
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