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Brothers jailed for stealing £80,000 worth of copper
Karl O'Dell
Karl O'Dell

TWO unemployed brothers were jailed today for their part in the theft of £80,000 worth of copper cabling from the railway, transport police said.

Karl and Stuart O'Dell were sentenced in Winchester Crown Court to offences in Hampshire and Dorset of theft, attempted theft and handling stolen goods.

Karl O'Dell, 33, of Kendal Avenue, Millbrook, Southampton, pleaded guilty to three counts of theft and one attempt theft and had four further offences taken into consideration at an earlier hearing. He was sentenced today to two and half years today.

His brother Stuart O'Dell, 29, of Windermere Avenue, Millbrook, Southampton, also pleaded guilty to three counts of handling stolen goods and was sentenced to two years in jail.

The offences related to the theft of cable between January and July 2007.

British Transport Police spokesman Detective Sergeant Sarah White said the brothers had been prolific during that time, taking cable from railway sidings and sub-stations and then selling it to local scrap yard dealers.

The pair were caught after covert cameras captured the men stealing cable from sub-stations at Branksome and Barton stations and transporting it to a scrap metal dealer based in Hampshire.

Det Sgt White said thieves are targeting the material as its price soars.

''On the rail system, theft of cable is a particular problem and is extremely dangerous to those involved. It can cause hours of delay to the thousands of passengers who rely on the rail network. Those who steal cable are not just risking a prison sentence, they are risking their lives, the policewoman said.

Figures from BTP found that metal thefts are up nationally by at least 150 per cent with an estimated cost of metal theft to UK industry at £360m a year.

5:29pm Friday 16th May 2008

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Posted by: paul b on 5:38pm Fri 16 May 08
Unemployed causing problems again

Put them all into work houses, stop their benefits, this will make them get a proper job
Posted by: Fartmeister on 7:03pm Fri 16 May 08
Tick Oirish pikeys.
Posted by: paul b on 7:13pm Fri 16 May 08
Fartmeister wrote:
Tick Oirish pikeys.
I wonder if this is the same family that masquerade as pikeys in their caravans on the local fields for what ever reason even though they have a council house. I dont know if anyone else remembers that story from last year?
Posted by: Citizen, soton on 6:13am Sat 17 May 08
No wonder the old bill got narky, stealing 80 grands worth of a copper
Posted by: The Star Chamber on 8:49am Sat 17 May 08
paul b wrote:
Unemployed causing problems again Put them all into work houses, stop their benefits, this will make them get a proper job
Clearly the Court should also have consider they were self-employed during this time and make them pay back their benefits and pay NI and PAYE on their income from the stolen goods.

Or perhaps just remove these scumbags from circulation permanently.

p.s. I see Karl is another who inherited the ugly gene.
Posted by: King Mush, Woolston on 11:34pm Sun 18 May 08
These kind of 'people' are pinching copper from all over.

Telephone exchanges get hit as they ripout low voltage wiring that results in whole areas having phones cut off.

What about the suicide jockeys that break into electric substations and risk having a few thousand volts up their scummy backsides?

Even homes are targeted as these prats even rip off strips of lead flashing from downstairs windows.

Loads of OAP bungalows have suffered this. Just so junkies and pikies can scrape up a few more quid.

A plague on all their houses (and caravans)
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