Man jailed after mini-digger theft in Chesterfield

Jack Milner was spotted driving the recovery vehicle by roads policing officers on the A617 less than 20 minutes after a call about a mini-digger being stolen from Hasland.

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Police received a 999 call from a concerned member of the public who had noticed suspicious activity around a building site on Storforth Lane at around 4.40pm on March 11.

They gave officers a description of the vehicle involved and patrolling officers stopped it just before 5pm.

The 23-year-old, of Florence Place, Harehills, Leeds, was behind the wheel and was arrested.

As well as finding the stolen mini-digger loaded on the truck, they also discovered the lorry itself had been stolen the previous month from Scunthorpe.

Milner was subsequently charged with theft of the truck, handling stolen goods and a number of motoring offences.

He pleaded guilty at Derby Crown Court and was sentenced to 16 months’ imprisonment.

Inspector Kara Butler, who is in charge of policing in the Chesterfield area, said: “The investigation saw our teams working together which has resulted in a stolen vehicle and expensive equipment being stopped and recovered, as well as a man being brought to justice for his actions.

“We would particularly like to thank the member of the public for contacting us to report their concerns and for giving us detailed descriptions of what they could see.

“We’re always grateful when people take the time to call to report suspicious behaviour.”

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