Copper thieves are at it again, this time stealing 200 feet of telephone wire, knocking out service for AT&T customers in Dallas.

The outage was reported early Monday morning while people were still asleep, so even though only about 20 customers reported problems, a whole lot more might notice the problem when they get home from work.

The amount of cable taken is worth about $2,000, not worth the risk the thieves took to get it. The cables are strung under high tension and can easily come in contact with power lines when they are taken down.

Cable theft has become increasingly common in the past few years as the prices of precious metals have skyrocketed.

AT&T wants the thieves behind bars. The company is offering a reward of $3,000 if you can help catch the crooks. Service is expected to be restored to that part of southern Dallas by 9 p.m. CT Monday night.