A wagon driver who siphoned thousands of pounds worth of fuel from a work vehicle and used it to heat his home because money was tight has been given a suspended prison sentence.
Jason Randall’s theft from Turners (Soham) Ltd was committed during the course of almost four years, Carlisle Magistrates’ Court was told today, between October, 2018, and May, 2022.
During that time, 47-year-old Randall was an agency driver attached to the freezer and cold store haulier.
Evidence drawn together by the company showed him leaving a Penrith base and travelling 6km to 7km to a layby.
Randall had parked in the layby before siphoning red diesel from the vehicle into a container. “Mr Randall visited the layby in Penrith 138 times and siphoned red diesel to the value of £7,464,” prosecutor George Shelley told the court.
That was the upper value of the theft according to the company’s calculations, the lower figure being £3,384.
When interviewed, Randall fully admitted the offence, stating he had used the red diesel to help heat his home. He was apologetic and remorseful.
Randall, of Friars Garth, Abbeytown, had committed no previous crimes during five to six years in the UK. A record from New Zealand showed four previous dishonesty offences.
Jeff Smith, mitigating, said Randall hadn’t the remotest idea how much fuel he had dishonestly taken, and had lost his work.
He had been an agency driver living with his wife of five years and her three children. “Money was tight. They struggled to get by as many do,” said Mr Smith. “He is very sorry for what he did. He knows that what he did was stupid. He knows that what he did was bound to catch up with him.”
Magistrates suspended a 26-week prison sentence for 12 months. Randall must complete 100 hours’ unpaid work and pay a £500 compensation contribution.
