Tip leads authorities to two of La Joya's missing manhole covers

LA JOYA — A "lucky" tip helped authorities unravel the mystery of this city’s missing manhole covers.

An Hidalgo County sheriff’s deputy received information about the manhole lids after local media covered the dilemma earlier this month, La Joya Police Chief Jose Del Angel said.

Two of the city’s three missing metal covers turned up at Alton Scrap Metal, 1405 N. Inspiration Road, Mission.

A La Joya maintenance worker and police officers went to the scrap yard and identified two manhole lids that belonged to the city, Del Angel said. A third cover appeared to belong to McAllen — the city’s name was engraved in the metal.

No arrests have been made in the case.

A worker at Alton Scrap Metal declined to disclose how much the business likely paid for the manhole covers, saying the case was "still under investigation."

But with each of the three manhole covers weighing about 85 pounds, the metal would fetch a total of about $11, based on an informal survey of area scrap yards.

Replacing all three of La Joya’s missing lids likely would have cost the city more than $400, Public Works Director Leopoldo Obregon said earlier in the month.

But with Tuesday’s recover of two of the city’s three missing covers, the damage won’t be quite as great.

"We were lucky," Del Angel said.