Two men were arrested and charged with theft yesterday by officers from British Transport Police. Jason Chisholm, aged 26, from Sunderland, was arrested at his home address on Tuesday, February 14, in connection with a spate of incidents in the Sunderland area over the past six months.
Chisholm was charged with theft of cable and has been bailed to appear at Sunderland Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, March 6.
Joseph Carolan, aged 47, from Pallion, was also arrested yesterday in connection with the theft of impedance bonds near to South Hylton station on the Sunderland extension of the Tyne and Wear Metro on 9 February 2012.
Carolan was questioned and charged with theft of impendence bonds, he has been released on police bail to appear at Sunderland Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, 6 March 2012.
Sergeant Nigel Ashworth, of British Transport Police’s dedicated Operation Leopard team, said:
“These arrests form part of ongoing work we are undertaking with Network Rail and local police forces to tackle this crime, work which is having a great effect.
“As part of our efforts to trace those responsible for cable theft we visit scrap yards in the area as most cable thieves look for the quickest way to sell on the stolen goods – scrap yards are one such method.
He added: “We work closely with scrap yard owners to monitor any cable which is brought in and, with assistance from railway and telecoms experts, can quickly identify stolen cable.
“The theft of cable has a direct impact on the everyday lives of the traveling public; it really is an attack on the community. The act of stealing cable is also an extremely dangerous crime which is costly to the rail industry and to the thousands of passengers who rely on the rail network.”
