UK - pandrol clips stolen

[John Ashworth]

Twelve tonnes of railway clips stolen
07 October 2008 | 14:00
Evening Star 24

MORE than £10,000 of metal railway clips have been stolen from an Ipswich depot in one of the biggest thefts of its kind.

Weighing in at around 12 tonnes, a total of 10,000 metal clips, used to secure rails to sleepers, were taken from the Balfour Beatty depot on London Road between 5pm on Wednesday and 7am on Thursday.

The crime follows a rising trend of metal theft due to its steadily increasing value.

Dc Alan Reed, of British Transport Police said it is the largest crime of its type he can remember.

“It is beyond the realms of belief that this was an opportunist theft,” he said.

“It must have taken the perpetrators some time and possibly would have required a specially equipped vehicle.

“This is part of an ongoing country-wide problem.

“We have had the theft of cable in this area before but this is the first time clips have been taken.”

Around 9,000 of the clips were purple featuring a stamped number 8SA while 1,000 were red with a stamped number 8KF.

Earlier this year it emerged that metal theft is the fastest-growing crime in the UK with railways often a target for criminals.

Anyone with information is asked to contact a special police hotline on 0800 40 50 40 quoting incident B3 on October 6. Alternatively contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.