Ten young individuals aged 18 to 20 will face charges at the Holstebro Court in Denmark on Monday for a series of thefts involving road signs belonging to the Thisted Municipality. They are accused of stealing a total of 31 road signs between February 15, 2022, and August 25, 2023. The cumulative value of the stolen signs amounts to 54,711 Danish kroner (approximately $8,150), and part of the charges also includes a demand for restitution.

While it is not clear which specific road signs have been stolen, the issue of sign theft is not new in Denmark. Several municipalities have encountered similar problems in recent years. For instance, the Viborg Municipality has reported that a particular road sign on Bollervej Street has been stolen 39 times since August 2022. The Thisted Municipality loses around 50 street signs annually, and on the island of Bornholm, signs on Kællingebyvej and Sprøjtevej near Pedersker are frequently targets of theft.

The financial burden of replacing stolen signs is significant for the affected municipalities. The Assens Municipality in Funen, for example, has dealt with an annual loss of approximately 100 signs indicating the town of Snave, which costs the municipality around 100,000 Danish kroner (about $15,000) for purchasing and installing new signs. To mitigate costs, Assens Municipality decided in April to remove the street signs and instead engrave the town name into the asphalt. This solution was chosen in the hope of reducing ongoing expenses and curbing the frequent thefts, which are believed to be inspired by the popular character Polle from Snave and the film “Polle Fiction.”

The theft of road signs can be punished with penalties ranging from fines to prison sentences of up to six years, depending on the severity of the case. The court session in Holstebro on Monday will be interesting to follow, as it will reveal how the young accused respond to the charges.