During the past few months the Wigan area has seen a significant rise in the number of thefts of cable. British Transport Police reports charges against three people.
Detective Inspector Andrea Rainey said: โTackling cable theft is a priority for BTP and we are prepared to do everything within our power โwithin the limits of the law โ to take action against anyone who steals from the railway.
โWe will be out and about during the coming days, weeks and months, targeting known hot-spot locations and making life as difficult as possible for would-be thieves.
โMy officers understand the misery caused by cable theft and will do to great lengths to deter thieves from targeting the railway.
โWhen thefts do occur we will use every investigative and forensic tactic available to us to trace those responsible and put them before the courts.โ
The theft of cable from the railway has say BTP an enormous impact on the travelling public with countless delays and cancellations directly attributable to the crime.
Network Rail route director Jo Kaye said: โIn the three months to the end of June we had 26 cable theft incidents in my central area, which covers Greater Manchester and Merseyside. As a result, 50 trains were cancelled and other services were delayed a total of 6,287 minutes – that’s the equivalent of nearly four and a half days.
โThis has a devastating effect on thousands of people who are late for work, miss business appointments or have their precious leisure time spoilt.
โWe will do everything we can to help the police bring offenders to justice, and press for sentences to reflect the effects of their crimes."
DI Rainey added: โWe are working extremely closely with Network Rail to address the issue and lessen the impact of cable theft on the communities of the North West and we are making significant progress.
โEarlier this week two men and a woman were charged with conspiracy to steal cable from the Wigan area and have been bailed to appear at court on 2 August.
โThe message from the entire railway industry is clear โ stay away from our cable.โ
