Cable / copper / metal theft - ongoing problems on the railways and elsewhere

[whole diary]

[phile]

Yes, the Police do seem to be taking the problem seriously but then they go to Court and much to the frustration of the police and the general public those in the Dock get away with a lenient sentence and what is more, not a deterrent to others.

[Tim]

Here is the follow up story.

http://www.thisisbath.co.uk/arrested-Bath-scrap-metal-raids/story-13313900-detail/story.html

I sold my old cast iron downpipes to Douglas and Tucker. The only illegality about that transaction was my parking whilst unloading the metal.

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the Tewkesbury Admag:

Evesham rail passengers suffered major delays this week after thieves stole more than 100 metres of copper cabling over two consecutive nights.

About 70 metres of the signalling cable was cut and stolen on Monday evening close to Common Road in Evesham. A search also discovered around 70 yards had been cut but left at the scene. On the following evening, about 50 metres of cable was taken from track near Kings Road in Evesham at about 7.12pm.

The thefts caused delays for early morning rail passengers on both Tuesday and yesterday morning and come shortly after a major project to improve the service was completed.

The manager of Evesham Station, Teresa Ceesay, said: ^People are suffering; they cannot get to their jobs or meetings.^

Patrick Hallgate, Network Rail^s route managing director said: ^Both incidents have resulted in nearly 1,200 minutes of delay to rail services, severely disrupting passengers.

^This is a serious crime with serious consequences and we are taking actions with the transport police to tackle this crime.^

Detective Sergeant Jon Rawson of the British Transport Police said: ^What thieves don^t realise is that they are working on live cable, carrying up to 25,000 volts.

^They are putting their lives at serious risk.^

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

There are now as many as eight cases of attempted cable theft from the railways a day, operator Network Rail has said.

Dyan Crowther, the body's operations director, said the crime was spreading across the UK^▸ (United Kingdom) and had cost the firm more than ^40m over the past two years. Most cases were "random", she told MPs^▸ (Member of Parliament), and there was evidence thieves were impersonating engineering staff.

A senior police officer said it was seen as a "low risk, high return" crime and penalties were not tough enough.

Ministers have said they are looking at new measures to combat the problem and are being urged to give police greater powers and to tighten regulation of scrap metal dealers.

Ms Crowther told the Transport Select Committee that the problem of cable theft had first surfaced in the north-east of England about two years ago and had "migrated" steadily across the country. While many cases took place at night, thefts were now regularly happening in peak time, she told MPs, and while there were "hotspots" there was no real pattern to their occurrence.

"It is quite difficult to predict and makes a response very difficult," she said.

There were now between six and eight attempted thefts a day, she said, which had cost Network Rail ^43m over the past two years in terms of compensation paid to train firms and repair costs.

"It is a risk. It is a risk to our network daily and we are working very hard to mitigate those risks."

In the most high-profile case yet, in June cable thieves disabled the signalling system near Woking in Surrey, causing massive disruption for around 80,000 passengers in the evening rush hour.

Ms Crowther said drivers were being briefed to report "suspicious activity" on the network amid evidence that thieves were pretending to be engineering staff in order to gain access to the railway.

Measures being used to combat cable theft, she told MPs, included increased use of surveillance, reinforcing railway sleepers and spraying tracks with traceable liquid to deter thieves.

Also giving evidence, the British Transport Police said it had 110 officers working full time on the problem as it was aware it was having a "very significant" effect on communities and businesses.

"We take it very, very seriously indeed. It fills up much of our waking time," Paul Crowther, the force's deputy director told the MPs.

There was a "clear correlation" between price of copper on commodity markets and rates of crime, he told MPs, suggesting cable theft was largely the work of "professional criminals".

"All routes lead us back to the market," he said. "It is a very market-driven crime. It is almost as if the criminals are looking at the market themselves."

Legislation for dealing with the crime, dating back to 1964, was "outdated" and needed redrafting. Those selling scrap metal to dealers did not have to provide proof of their identity and, unless this was tightened, it would be "almost impossible" to charge someone if the material was obtained illegally.

"It really is Steptoe and Son legislation which has not kept pace with current methods. The traceability of the individual is compromised which means the traceability of the material is compromised and the whole incidence of cash in the process creates situations where corrupt practices can take place."

While the maximum fine available under current law was ^1,000, those committing the crimes could make thousands of pounds, he said, while sentences awarded often "did not reflect the impact".

Labour have urged ministers to toughen regulation by licensing scrap metal dealers, making it easier to close down rogue operators and to examine a ban on cash transactions.

Ian Hetherington, head of the British Metals Recycling Association, said there was a problem with the number of illegal scrap dealers in the UK which could be as many as 900. The industry accepted regulations needed to be updated, he added, but this would make no difference unless they were properly enforced and there needed to be a uniform approach by the police.

"Frankly if existing law cannot be enforced, new law will not be enforced any better," he said. "I would not stand in the way of local policing but it does produce a proliferation of well-meaning and relatively short-lived policing initiatives. Our members are subject to a different set of criteria set out by the police in Manchester and Lancashire as they are in Kent or in Norfolk. It is a very disjointed picture in terms of policing."

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the British Transport Police press release:

MEN CAUGHT TRYING TO STEAL RAILWAY CABLE JAILED FOR 15 MONTHS

Three men who were trying to steal railway cable near to the rail line in Pinner have each been jailed for 15 months after British Transport Police (BTP^▸ (British Transport Police)) officers in plain clothes caught the men returning to a spot where cable had been cut previously.

Iulian Baston (23) of Ilford Lane, Ilford, Constantin Levarda (25) of Brent Park Road, Brent Cross and Ioan Fartaes (34) of Morley Avenue, Wood Green, were sentenced at Harrow Crown Court on Wednesday 16 November after being found guilty of going equipped to steal at a trial in October.

BTP received a report from railway contractors that lengths of railway cable had been cut and hidden in undergrowth near to the line-side in Pinner on the morning of Wednesday 12 January.

Officers in plain clothes decided to observe the location that night in plain clothes and saw the three men approach at about 10pm. The men could provide no adequate explanation before a search of them and their vehicle found a hacksaw a pair of metal cutters and pairs of heavy-duty gloves.

BTP Sergeant Mike Hender, investigating, said: ^We arrested the men after they couldn^t provide us with a satisfactory explanation of what they were doing near to the rail line at that time of night. They also couldn^t explain why we found a hacksaw and cutting tools in their car - evidence which sealed their convictions. Crime which involves the theft or attempted theft of railway cable attracts strong penalties and I hope the jail sentences handed to these three men will act as a deterrent to others.^

His Honour Judge Holt, describing the impact of cable theft on Britain as he sentenced the men, said: ^It gnaws away at the economic wellbeing of this country. It has only just been widely publicised that 1,969 trains were cancelled in the last 6 months alone as a result of cable theft. Thousands of passengers are inconvenienced by this. They are late for work and miss hospital appointments.

^In my view the only sentence that I can pass is one of immediate custody to deter others.^

Edit note: Images now removed due to expiry of copyright permission. CfN

[Chris from Nailsea]

From Elmbridge Today:

South West Trains apologises to those affected by disruption

South West Trains has apologised for any inconvenience that may have been caused following emergency engineering works on the approach to London Waterloo yesterday (Monday).

Network Rail identified a defect with a set of points, which had to be repaired before trains could run over them safely.

As a result, platforms one to four at Waterloo were closed and South West Trains ran a reduced service to and from the station throughout the day.

This saw trains between Hampton Court and Waterloo only running between Hampton Court and Surbiton.

Meanwhile, trains on the Guildford via Cobham service had to call at Berrylands, New Malden and Raynes Park in addition to their usual stops, which include Cobham & Stoke D^Abernon, Oxshott, Claygate and Hinchley Wood.

Richard O^Brien, Network Rail^s route managing director for Wessex, confirmed that the points defect was resolved by 4pm yesterday afternoon.

South West Trains returned to a normal timetable from the start of service today (Tuesday).

Jake Kelly, the company^s customer service director, thanked passengers for their patience and apologised for any inconvenience that may have been caused following the emergency engineering works.

[paul7575]

Network Rail identified a defect with a set of points, which had to be repaired before trains could run over them safely.

I suppose this must be a real improvement on the old system, where their maintenence attempts actually made things worse, which allowed a couple of trains to derail just outside the station.   

In both instances, recent maintenance activity had exacerbated latent defects which had not
been identified by previous routine inspection.

http://www.raib.gov.uk/cms_resources.cfm?file=/071218_R442007_Waterloo.pdf

Paul

[broadgage]

Well that certainly sounds like an effective sentance.
They cant do it again whilst inside, and hopefully wont when released.
MIGHT deter others.
I suspect though that prison sentances are not the norm for such thefts, this case may be in the news because of unusual severity of the punishment.

If there was a significant risk of significant prison time then I doubt that metal theft would be such a popular crime.

[6 OF 2 redundant adjunct of unimatrix 01]

In addition after the sentence they should arrive home to find all cables and pipes in the house have been removed

[EBrown]

A bit more reading from Rail News

SOME Network Rail staff and contractors are cable thieves, according to a senior manager.

The problem of metal thefts is becoming worse as the value of some metals, particularly copper, continues to rise on world markets, and there are increasingly strident calls for the scrap metal trade to be licensed and regulated.

The revelation about the involvement of some Network Rail insiders came from operational services directory Dyan Crowther, when she was giving evidence to the House of Commons transport committee.

She told the hearing that the staff and contractors working on projects inevitably had inside knowledge about where and when a signalling scheme was taking place.

She said: "There is evidence that there is inside knowledge. There have been arrests and prosecutions of Network Rail staff who have been involved in cable theft."

"It's almost like providing sweets in a sweet shop," she added.

With the incidence of thefts and resulting rail disruption getting worse, British Transport Police have described the present system of controlling the scrap metal trade as dating from the days of Steptoe and Son.

BTP^▸ (British Transport Police) deputy chief constable Paul Crowther told the committee that legislation had not kept pace with modern conditions.

Describing railway cable theft as a 'low-risk, high-return activity', the deputy chief constable said: "When you go to scrap metal dealers you give your name and address and there are no means of knowing if the information is true. We have a risk and reward balance which is in favour of the criminal."

Virgin Trains is the latest industry member to campaign for tighter controls on the handling of scrap metals, after its services have been disrupted on numerous occasions by thefts of equipment on the West Coast Main Line.

VT^▸ (Virgin Trains - former franchises)'s chief operating officer Chris Gibb was joined at Coventry station on Monday this week by representatives of British Transport Police, London Midland and the security company SmartWater to distribute information about the problem, and what it is being done to combat it.

The West Midlands is one of the country's hot-spots for cable thefts, and Mr Gibb said: "Cable theft continues to be an escalating threat to Virgin Trains^ customers and the economy. In 2010/11 there were 6,000 hours of train delay related to more than 3,000 crimes, and British Transport Police made more than 900 arrests. The trend so far this year is worse, despite a 20 per cent drop in the price of copper. On a single day recently Virgin Trains experienced 60 hours of delay.

^The cost to the railways alone reaches around ^19 million a year to replace lost cable and to compensate passenger and freight operators for the delays caused, while the wider impact on lost business and productivity accounts for another ^19 million.

^But cable theft is not a victimless crime. Delayed customers are people with lives to lead ^ jobs to get to, family to see and hospital appointments to make. The cable thieves are disrupting people's lives."

[Tim]

Measures being used to combat cable theft, she told MPs^▸ (Member of Parliament), included i[...] reinforcing railway sleepers

How does that work then?

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the Oxford Mail:

The president of an Oxfordshire rail campaign group is aiming to curb the surge in scrap metal thefts by getting the law changed.

Lord Faulkner, who heads the Cotswold Line Promotion Group, wants to make cash transactions for scrap metal illegal.

He has tabled a Private Member^s Bill and a series of amendments in the House of Lords to try to secure a ban.

Metal theft has surged in recent years due to record prices for copper and other metals, combined with a boom in demand in China, India and other Asian countries.

Thefts of copper signal cables have disrupted train services on the Cotswold Line between Oxford and Worcester several times in recent weeks.

Thieves have also struck at other public services and buildings around Oxfordshire in the past year.

Telephone and internet users in Eynsham and Chinnor were cut off this summer when cables were stolen, lead worth ^100,000 was stripped from the roof of St Mary^s Church in Warkworth, near Banbury, in August, while schools, churches and council offices were targeted by lead thieves in Abingdon in September.

While the value of the metal stolen may be small, the costs of disruption and repairs can be huge.

The rail industry estimates cable thefts over the past three years have caused 16,000 hours of delays to trains and cost ^43m, while the Association of Chief Police Officers says metal thefts cost the UK^▸ (United Kingdom) ^770m a year.

Announcing his proposed amendments to the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill, Lord Faulkner told the House of Lords: ^The move to cashless transactions (for scrap) is seen by all the interested parties as an essential step in the process of getting this business under some sort of control.^

As well as banning cash deals for scrap, the peer wants sentencing guidance revised, so courts take into account the cost of disruption and repairs caused by scrap thieves, not just the value of the metal they take.

Scrap merchant Jonathan Smith, of AV^▸ (Autonomous (self driving) Vehicle) Smith and Son, of Frogs Island, off Old Didcot Road, Wallingford, said: ^I think cashless transactions would help cut down on the problem of metal thefts. I think it would be a good idea.

^I would like the trade to be as clean as possible.^

He added: ^I would love to stop the thieves. It^s not just churches and businesses being raided, ^3,500 of metal was stolen from our yard a year ago by someone who came in across the fields.

^But you also need to do something about people who are buying the metal without any checks. I always ask for photograph identification and take details of people^s vehicles, and record every delivery coming into the yard, so everything I buy is there in black and white.^

Oxford East MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) Andrew Smith said: ^Metal theft is a huge problem, hitting householders, local businesses and churches.

^The bill looks a good idea. I would just want assurances it won^t hit the legitimate recycling industry.^

An online petition calling for an end to cash transactions for scrap has attracted more than 44,000 signatures since August. See epetitions.
direct.gov.uk/petitions/406

[Chris from Nailsea]

As we seemed to have accumulated some ten different topics, on two different boards, all on the subject of 'metal theft', I've now merged them all here - in the interests of continuity and completeness, as always!

Chris. 

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Thieves stole ^13m of metal from railways, say police

Metal worth ^13m has been stolen from the railways over the past three years, police have said.

British Transport Police said there were more than 6,000 such incidents between April 2008 and October 2011.

In half of cases, the stolen property involved equipment used for the safe and efficient operating of the network.

British Transport Police deputy chief constable Paul Crowther urged scrap dealers to make it more difficult for thieves to sell stolen goods to them.

The biggest single theft was at Loxdale Street, Bilston, in the West Midlands, in July of last year.

Thieves took 150m of fibre optic cable and 18km of earth bonding cable, each worth ^300,000. British Transport Police (BTP^▸ (British Transport Police)) said two men have been charged over the incidents.

Another ^300,000 worth of train buffers and components were stolen at Stoke-on-Trent in December 2009.

Overall, Rotherham Central was the worst affected station with 107 separate incidents costing a total of ^100,000.

There were 24 fewer incidents at Doncaster but they totalled nearly ^200,000, including an ^88,000 half-mile stretch of track taken in December 2010.

Other hotspots included Morpeth (77 incidents), Stockingford (69), Knottingly (67), Castleford (66), Hull (63) and Hartlepool (53)

Mr Crowther, head of the Association of Chief Police Officers metal theft working group, said BTP arrested more than 1,000 people in connection with cable thefts last year. He said: "We are continuing to work with police forces across the country to tackle metal thieves, but this is a crime driven by market forces and the outlet for stolen metal is through scrap metal dealers.

"Our biggest challenge is that criminals can turn up at scrap yards with copper cables and walk away with thousands of pounds in cash, with scrap yards either turning a blind eye to their criminality or taking metal with no questions asked. It's easy to convert this stolen property into cash and that's why we continue to focus our attention on dealers."

Infrastructure company Network Rail wants a change in the law to make it more difficult for thieves to sell cable and scrap to dealers.

A spokesman said: "Thieves, particularly those stealing cable, deny passengers the service they rightly expect and, through the massive cost to the industry, deny everyone improvements to rail services as funds have to be diverted from enhancing the railway to tackling crime."

On Sunday, insurer Ecclesiastical revealed that 2011 was the worst on record for the number of claims made by churches for metal theft.

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Scrap metal laws to be tightened to tackle theft

Cash payments for scrap metal are to be outlawed and fines "significantly increased" to tackle the growing problem of metal theft.

Home Secretary Theresa May announced the proposed new laws in a written statement to MPs^▸ (Member of Parliament).

The measures will end the current "low-risk transactions" for people who steal metal - such as cables - which have disrupted rail services, she said.

Labour said the measures did not go far enough to tackle the "epidemic".

The metal recycling industry is worth ^5.6bn and employs 8,000 people in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom).

There have been growing calls for action as metal thefts from railways have increased in recent years - causing disruption to 3.8 million passengers last year and costing more than ^16m.

Many churches have had lead stolen from their roofs, while copper has been taken from telephone exchanges and building sites.

In a parliamentary statement, Mrs May said a change in the law was the "only sustainable, long-term solution to the growing menace of metal theft.

"There is an urgent need to make stealing metal less attractive to criminals, and tackling the stolen metal market will act as a significant deterrent".

She announced that fines for all offences listed under the 1964 Scrap Metal Dealers Act would rise.

Cash payments for scrap metal would be banned, as they led to "anonymous, low-risk transactions" for thieves and meant "poor record keeping" within the industry, Mrs May said.

The new measures will be added as amendments to the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill.

Her announcement came on the day the Commons transport committee called for these and other measures to tackle metal theft.

The committee's chairman, Labour MP Louise Ellman, said of the scrap metal industry: "It's a Steptoe and Son situation... no questions asked."

For Labour, shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said proposals to increase fines and stop cash payments at scrap yards were welcome.

But she said police needed greater powers to enter scrap metal yards and close dealers not obeying the rules. "The Government needs to get serious on metal theft... wire theft is causing repeated power cuts, plunging communities regularly into darkness, and putting lives at risk. Yet despite this growing problem, the Home Secretary is being too slow and too sluggish."

She said Labour would be putting forward tougher and more substantial proposals in Parliament next week.