Trainer error led to arrest of jailed bogus workman in Mansfield Woodhouse

PCs Pete Gardiner and Luke Bettridge were called to Mansfield Woodhouse on January 29 (2024) last year when an off-duty colleague became suspicious of a group of workmen digging up the road.

As the officers arrived in Mansfield Woodhouse High Street, they were met by high-vis-clad Graham Roberts, who explained that he and his colleagues were digging up the pavement in search of a water leak.

It was then, however, that PC Gardiner looked down and noticed one key detail that was clearly out of place – the flimsy pair of trainers on Roberts’ feet.

He explained: “At first Roberts and the two men with him looked legitimate.

“They were dressed in high vis clothing and had most of the tools and accessories you’d expect to see at a legitimate work site.

“One thing you don’t expect to see, however, is someone wearing soft shell trainers around heavy industrial machinery.

“That was an instant red flag and led us to arrest him on suspicion of unlawfully extracting electricity and criminal damage.”

Once back at the station, PC Gardiner and his colleagues learned that Roberts was already the subject of a national investigation led by the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit.

He was subsequently released on bail and was later charged for his role in a major national conspiracy.

Roberts, it transpired, was one of eight men working to supply electricity to cannabis farms operated across the UK by Albanian organised crime groups.

Operating in plain sight, their company Elev8 Civils and Utilities Ltd was connecting houses pubs, shops and other empty buildings to the mains electricity grid – allowing them to operate without running up suspiciously high utility bills.

Posing as legitimate workmen – compete with branded sign written vans – they operated between November 2023 and February 2024 at at least 54 different locations.

After a three-year investigation, Roberts and his co-conspirators each pleaded guilty to conspiring abstract electricity and an offence under the Serious Crime Act.

As it transpired, a very significant piece of evidence against the men was recovered during their ill-fated visit to Mansfield Woodhouse – a GPS enabled scanning device used to detect underground power cables.

When the device’s internal memory was examined by detectives, it revealed various other locations around the country the men had been digging up.

Appearing at Liverpool Crown Court on March 6 and 7 they were jailed for a combined total of 28 years.

PC Gardiner added: “I’ve seen and heard a lot over my policing career and had got to the point where I wasn’t really surprised by anything, but this one really did take me aback for the sheer audacity of the crime.

“I am pleased this investigation has now been concluded and that these men have been handed the prison terms they deserve.”