Sheffield thieves 'stole hundreds of pounds worth of wood from Wickes timber yard'

Two thieves who stole hundreds of pounds worth of wood from a Wickes timber yard during the coronavirus lockdown have been jailed.
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Sheffield Crown Court heard on May 26 how Luke Mather, aged 25, of Adlington Road, Southey Green, Sheffield, and Nicky Tyree, aged 25, of Longley Hall Way, Longley, Sheffield, struck at the Wickes timber yard in Rotherham.

Ayman Khokhar, prosecuting, said police spotted a white transit van at the site with its doors open and wood was seen in the vehicle.

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Mr Khokhar added Mather jumped over a wall and Tyree was apprehended immediately and police discovered £400 of stolen timber in the van.

Two thieves who stole wood from a Wickes timber yard have been given custodial sentences at Sheffield Crown Court, pictured.Two thieves who stole wood from a Wickes timber yard have been given custodial sentences at Sheffield Crown Court, pictured.
Two thieves who stole wood from a Wickes timber yard have been given custodial sentences at Sheffield Crown Court, pictured.

Both defendants, who have previous convictions, pleaded guilty to the theft which happened during the evening of April 26.

Cheryl Dunn, defending, said both defendants had not been in trouble for a while prior to the theft at Wickes.

She added: “They were – until the current lockdown and the current crisis which we are all enduring – both working.”

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But Ms Dunn added that as the lockdown took effect both defendants were struggling financially.

She said Mather had been living with his parents and Tyree had been living with his father due to the difficult circumstances.

Judge Graham Reeds QC told Mather and Tyree that on April 26 they should have been at home but they decided to go out and commit an offence during a national emergency and that justifies a custodial sentence.

Mather and Tyree, who have already served four-weeks in prison on remand, were each sentenced to 12-months of custody.