Whose stealing bridge nameplates? And why?

One of the more peculiar stories in the news today, January 22nd 2025, is that of the missing bridge nameplates. Reportedly in the city of Hakodate, and surrounding districts in Hokkaido, there are at least 78 bridge nameplates missing. Somebody or a group of people are purposefully removing the nameplates on the bridges. Will they ever discover who?

Whether they are stealing them to be repurposed or the person or group of people are just doing it for entertainment is unclear. But the speculation is that they are most likely being plundered to be sold. They are taking bronze and aluminium nameplates. According to a representative of Hokkaido the bronze nameplates cost 50,000 yen each. Therefore, they probably have a good resale value.

It is amazing to me that nobody has noticed anybody removing the bridge nameplates. But I suppose many of them are probably in rural areas where there aren't many people watching, day or night. It also makes me curious: who would buy bridge nameplates knowing that they are stolen? Maybe the offenders melt them down first. 

Have you ever seen a bridge without a nameplate? If so, maybe its been stolen! However, not all bridges do have a nameplate on them in my experience. Even fewer now!