If you steal gasoline, you're arrested.

And now, if you steal water, you will be arrested.

City officials say the crackdown is needed because some people will do almost anything to get free water.

One East Ferry Street water thief dug a shallow trench and buried a garden hose that snaked from a neighbor's home to his property. His water service had been shut off a short time earlier because he didn't pay his bills.

A Breckenridge Street man - a plumber whose water service was turned off for nonpayment - was accused of threatening an elderly neighbor after she balked at his scheme to run a hose from her home to his property. He has since left the region.

And during a crackdown a few years ago, investigators found a tiny street off Fillmore Avenue where at least half of the dozen or so homes had illegal water hookups.

These are water pirates. And they drive up the cost for everyone else.

The city is now taking a tougher stand. If you steal water, you will be arrested.

In the past, the city has stopped short of criminally prosecuting offenders.

That's about to change. For the first time, the Water Board has decided to get the Police Department involved. Water officials have contacted the Erie County district attorney's office about the plan. Prosecutors advised them the best way to proceed would be for police officers to investigate cases and file reports involving water theft. Depending on how much water is involved and whether the person has stolen services before, he or she could face felony charges punishable by up to four years in prison.

Water theft is more common than some might think. In the past 12 months, city crews have discovered 1,037 city properties that had illegal water hookups in a city that has about 79,200 active accounts. Thousands of other water pirates have yet to be found, experts believe.

"We've heard there are people out there who have made a cottage industry out of restoring water service that has been turned off," said James Campolong, project manager of American Water Services, which operates Buffalo's system.

Water turn-on keys - long poles with attachments that activate underground valves - are relatively easy to procure. Water officials have heard that some hardware stores rent the devices. For every 1,000 customers who steal water instead of paying for it, the city loses between $300,000 and $400,000 in annual revenue.

It's something that should infuriate all property owners, said the head of the Seneca-Babcock Block Club.

"If you're stealing water, you're driving up my rates and everyone else's rates," said Arthur J. Robinson Jr.

Water Board Vice Chairman Warren K. Galloway says the new offensive will bring in far more revenue than what it will cost to get police officers involved.

"The problem is out of hand, and we need to prosecute people for stealing water," Galloway said. "They're living off good-paying customers."

Few people steal water because they don't have the money to pay their bills, said Shirley Hunter, customer service manager at American Water Services. About 6,000 customers are currently on payment plans to whittle down water debts as they continue to receive service.

Most people who steal water simply don't want to pay, she said.

"They've been able to get away with it in the past without being caught," she said.

Some offenders have been diabolically creative.

There have been cases where people dug up curb boxes that red-flag the location of water valves, moving the boxes to different spots to trick turn-off crews.

Others have poured concrete into the openings after they illegally restored water service.

The new plan to criminally prosecuting offenders is just one action the city is taking to combat water theft. Other steps include:

• A new program sends crews into neighborhoods to check properties that are supposed to be vacant and no longer receive water bills. False reports involving occupied homes that are supposed to be vacant have been a growing problem.

"Our field staff visually checks these properties to see if there are any signs of people living there," Campolong said.

• The Water Board has launched an awareness campaign and set up a hotline to encourage people to report possible water theft. The number is 847-1077.

• A property tagging blitz where crews place stickers on homes that have come on to the security division's radar screens for whatever reasons. The stickers warn people that if they don't call within 72 hours, water service will be turned off. Hunter said there have been instances in which people have seen their neighbors' properties tagged and decided that they better not risk being caught in the dragnet.

"We've had some theft of services people come in just wanting to clear things up," Hunter said. "We've put them on payment plans."

• Some property owners who have illegally restored water service 10 or even 12 times have seen crews take a drastic step to prevent future theft. The city can dig up a property and turn off service at the water main. It's an expensive task that typically costs about $800.

The charges are tagged on to the existing debt of the offending owner. Restoring service could cost the offender a couple thousand dollars, or more.

Campolong estimated that one third of all resources in the Water Division are used for collection-related tasks. And he said the ongoing efforts are paying dividends. Since 2003, the city has collected $14.5 million from customers who have had water service shut off.

"We're doing everything we can legally do to get people to pay their bills," he said. "I think a lot of people are beginning to realize that there are some new efforts that will make it a lot harder to get free water."