Four Men Jailed for £1 Million BT Cable Heist Across UK
A ruthless gang has been locked up for a combined 14 years after stealing nearly £1 million worth of BT Openreach cables across Essex, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, and Wrexham. The brazen thefts, involving 31 raids on rural underground networks, sparked chaos for thousands of customers.
High-Octane Raids Using 4x4s and False Plates
The quartet – 24-year-old Billy Lee Junior, 22-year-old Levi Lee, 23-year-old Samuel Sheady-Jones, and 26-year-old Ashley Byford – used 4x4s sporting fake number plates to strike remote manhole covers. They cut cables and winched out bundles of copper wiring during a nine-month crime spree.
Their daring thefts caused severe network interruptions hitting over 16,000 BT lines, affecting homes and businesses alike, with damages topping £750,000.
Police Pin Down Gang With Forensic Evidence and Raids
One key bust happened in Earith, Cambridgeshire, where police found a 4×4 surrounded by stolen cable. Forensic work on the vehicle led straight to the gang. Police raids recovered tools including wire cutters, a winch, a Mitsubishi Shogun, and a drill linked by DNA to Byford.
Shockingly, £54,000 in cash was seized from Lee’s properties, stashed in a caravan and even inside a dog kennel.
Sentences Handed Down at Chelmsford Crown Court
- Billy Lee Junior: 4 years 8 months
- Levi Lee: 4 years 5 months
- Samuel Sheady-Jones: 3 years 7 months
- Ashley Byford: 16 months
“This group caused widespread disruption, impacting 16,000 customer lines and leaving many vulnerable people cut off from family and emergency services,” said Detective Inspector Frazer Low. “They thought they were acting under the radar, but thanks to Openreach’s evidence, we secured their convictions.”
Emma Sandison, Openreach Security Director, added, “Phone and broadband losses don’t just inconvenience customers – they put vulnerable people at risk. Repairs drag our engineers away from vital projects and take weeks to fix, costing thousands.”
Openreach teamed up with Essex Police, using 24/7 network monitoring and advanced security tech to nab the gang behind this costly cable crime operation.
