Cable thieves in East Lancashire are being told ‘We’re watching you’

British Transport Police image

British Transport Police officers in the area are on the lookout for thieves after a recent spate of incidents in the county.

Now, in a bid to nip the problem in the bud, BTP is warning prospective criminals to steer clear of the railway – or face the consequences.

Inspector Adrian Yorston said: “Cable thieves have been operating in east Lancashire during the past few months and, whilst the number of incidents have reduced in recent weeks, we want to send a clear message that any activity which impacts negatively on the railway will not be tolerated.”

Cable theft has a massive impact on the railway as, when thieves cut through vital cabling, power can be lost to various parts of the infrastructure which often results in lengthy delays and even cancellations whilst the damage is located and repaired.

Insepctor Yorston added: “Cable theft is one of the highest priorities for BTP and we are working closely with Network Rail, other police forces and even the Serious and Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) to tackle the issue.

“Officers will be out and about across the region in the coming weeks and months to deter criminals from targeting the railway and also to catch those in the act of stealing or damaging cable.

“We will also be visiting scrap yards throughout Lancashire to look for any cable or other metal that may have been stolen from the railway or elsewhere.

The vast majority of cable thieves look to sell on the stolen goods to local scrap dealers, claiming they have legitimately acquired the metal.

BTP has been working hard to build links within the scrap metal industry and to educate dealers about what to look out for when people bring cable and other metal into their yards.

Inspector Yorston said: “We will continue to work with the scrap metal recycling industry to restrict opportunities for thieves to sell on their stolen goods and to make life more difficult for those few scrap dealers who continue to trade in stolen metal.

“We have a number of forensic techniques at our disposal to determine whether metal has been stolen or not – ranging from visual identification of railway property to DNA marking which clearly identifies property as having come from a set location.

“We will utilise all these techniques to brig cable thieves to justice and to restrict the trade in stolen metal.”

If you have information about any form of cable or metal theft please ring British Transport Police on 0800 40 50 40 or call Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.