REWARD FOR PONTEFRACT MAN WHO HELPED CATCH RAILWAY CABLE THIEVES

Tuesday 3 Feb 2009

REWARD FOR PONTEFRACT MAN WHO HELPED CATCH RAILWAY CABLE THIEVES

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Ben Kidson has received a £1,000 reward from Network Rail and a commendation from the Area Commander of the British Transport Police (BTP) in the north east after he helped catch three rail cable thieves.

On 26 April 2007 Mr Kidson spotted a man in a car on private land at the farm he runs with his father in Pontefract. "It was when he told me that he was looking for an ice-cream van at eight o'clock in the morning I got really suspicious." he said.

The man drove off but Mr Kidson noted the registration and also found a saw and some cut railway cable. As a result of his help three men were successfully convicted on 3 July 2008 and each given custodial sentences ranging from nine months to a year.

Warrick Dent, area general manager for Network Rail, said: "People think that this is a victimless crime - it's not. Cable thieves are bringing misery to train passengers in Yorkshire every week and costing the industry many thousands of pounds which cannot be invested elsewhere.

"It was an honour to meet Ben and thank him personally for his help. His bravery in standing up to the thieves is admirable and I hope that his actions encourage others who have information about similar crimes to come forward."

Chief Superintendent Terry Nicholson from the BTP added: "Thanks to Ben's quick thinking we've made arrests and had three successful convictions. It is true that we cannot police without the help of the public and this commendation is well-deserved. I would encourage people to follow Ben’s good example – if you have information about criminal activity then call Crimestoppers. Your call is anonymous.”

Commenting on his reward and commendation, 24 year old Mr Kidson said: "I never expected anything like this. All of our family try to keep an eye out and it was nice to do something which leads to such a good result. I'd like to thank Chief Supt Nicholson and Warrick Dent - and also DC Gary Heseltine for his help and support."

Network Rail, in partnership with the charity Crimestoppers, is offering a reward of up to £1,000 for information which leads to the conviction of railway cable thieves. Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Notes to editors

About cable theft As soon as a cable is cut, trains are brought to a halt. This protects the safety of passengers and rail staff but results in delays and disruptions, sometimes for several hours. All costs from cable theft must be paid for by the rail industry - preventing that money from being invested on improving services for customers. Following a trial campaign in 2008, Network Rail has signed a year-long deal with the charity Crimestoppers to highlight the disruption caused by selfish thieves - and also the danger in which they are placing themselves. The reward is up to £1,000 for information which leads to the arrest AND conviction of a person or persons for the theft of copper cable from the rail network. Fighting cable theft British Transport Police has devoted considerable resources to driving down this type of crime, through targeted policing including intelligence-led operations, proactive patrols using dogs and off-road motorbikes and scrap yard visits. During 2008 BTP planned and participated in a number of multi-agency operations targeting the crime. They made almost 600 arrests in relation to metal theft during the year. The Network Rail helicopter is used to patrol "at risk" routes to help deter and catch thieves. Network Rail has employed additional staff to patrol routes and to help restore services once a theft has occurred. Network Rail has spent approximately £2m per year since April 2007 on mitigation measures to prevent thefts. This includes new types of surveillance equipment and measures to make the cable more difficult to steal. The rail industry is committed to a continuous education programme that has already reaped rewards. Thanks to the extra vigilance of train drivers, along with signallers, maintenance operations managers and track side staff several cable theft attempts have been foiled and subsequent arrests made. About Crimestoppers Crimestoppers is an independent charity dedicated to solving crimes and taking criminals off the streets. Around 17 people are arrested and charged every day as a result of information given to Crimestoppers. One person every five days is charged with murder. Since Crimestoppers began in 1988, it has received over a million actionable calls, resulting in over 87,000 arrests and charges. Over £103 million worth of property has been recovered and nearly £160 million worth of drugs. Crimestoppers UK was founded by Lord Ashcroft, KCMG, Chairman of Trustees. In 1988, he launched Crimestoppers in the Metropolitan Police area. Crimestoppers is built on a three-way partnership between the business community, the police and the media

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