Scrap metal recycling is lucrative in the US too. So much so that they implemented a license requirement (at least in my home town), because too many thieves were breaking into homes for AC units and/or ripping out copper wiring. Can you imagine ripping into someone's walls and costing them thousands of dollars just so you can earn maybe $50? Some people... upvoted and followed.
RE: A scary trip to the metal recycler.