A gang of copper thieves have been jailed after they were stopped by police and found with thousands of pounds worth of cut up copper cable.

Three men living in Elstree were among six sentenced for the theft, which took place in Staffordshire in the West Midlands.

More than £10,000 worth of copper wiring was stolen from a business in Lichfield last year.

The six men were caught by Staffordshire Police after they were spotted loading copper wiring into the van in the early hours of November 29 after removing a security fence.

A police officer spotted the heavily loaded Mercedes Vito can travelling in convoy with a Volkswagen Passat, and the thieves were followed onto the M6 motorway.

Both vehicles were stopped and the copper cable was seized from the van.

Police also found heavy duty cable cutters and two sets of bolt cutters in the Passat.

Borehamwood Times:

Credit: Staffordshire Police

All six men pleaded guilty in court to the theft and now they have all be jailed.

Georgian Boghici, 19, Marius Boghici, 22, and Gherasim Cretu, 38, all of Elstree Hill South, were jailed for 16 months, 15 months, and 18 months respectively.

Georgian Boghici was given a further two years and four months in prison for two counts of burglary in London.

Florin Arpad, 20, of Maple Avenue in Harrow, Florin Rusu, 26, of no fixed address, and Marian Miron, 38, of Far End, Northampton, were all jailed for 15 months.