TWO thieves who stripped lead flashing worth more than £2,000 from council houses after being employed to repair a broken roof have walked free from court.

Michael Alan Milburn and Jimmy Nicholson, both from Darlington, were asked to repair the roof of 66-year-old man’s home in Yorkshire Place, Bishop Auckland, on June 12.

Instead they took lead flashing from the roof of the property and two neighbouring houses, owned by Dale and Valley Homes, worth £2,278.94, Darlington Magistrates’ Court heard.

Prosecutor Paula Sanderson said a neighbour alerted the police after seeing 30-year-old Milburn on the roof of the property throwing the lead down to 22-year-old Nicholson who placed it in their van.

When interviewed by police, the pair denied stealing the lead, instead claiming it had been in the van from a previous legitimate job.

The pair were working for Nicholson’s father’s company, J&N Property Maintenance, and have since been sacked.

Amrit Jandoo, mitigating, told the court the main reason for committing the offence was financial pressures, and the pair have shown genuine remorse and have been extremely apologetic.

“They do not want to be before the court again,” he said. 

The pair pleaded guilty to three charges of theft when they appeared at Newton Aycliffe Magistrates’ Court in August and appeared at Darlington Magistrates’ Court yesterday (Thursday, October 3) for sentencing.

Nicholson, of Claremont Road, Darlington, was given 16 weeks in prison, suspended for 12 months. He was also ordered to complete 100 hours of unpaid work, given a three-month curfew from 8pm to 7am and will pay £250 of compensation to his elderly victims.

Milburn, of Close Street, Darlington, was also given a 16-week custodial sentence, suspended for 12 months with 12 months of supervision. He will also be subject to a curfew for four months from 8pm to 7am and was ordered to pay £250 compensation.