BUNGLING thieves who tried to steal copper cable valued at almost £8,000 from a factory on Wrexham Industrial Estate have been sentenced for their crimes.

Rhian Jackson, prosecuting, told how Liam Joseph Edwards and Michael Lee Hodkinson planned to take the cable from Prysmian Cables & Systems Ltd on Oak Road after being told it was easy to break into by a criminal acquaintance.

At around midnight on June 1 they were spotted by a security guard on the site and police officers were called who found the friends following a search of the area.

Edwards, 30, of Cefn Road and Hodkinson, 29, of Montrose Gardens, both Wrexham, were discovered close to a large number of wooden drums from which they were pulling the cable and stripping it of its protective covering using an angle grinder.

Both men were wearing hoods and gloves and Edwards' van was later found parked nearby with a quantity of cable stashed in the back, North East Wales Magistrates Court at Mold was told.

On taken into custody, Hodkinson was also found to be in possession of a small amount of cannabis and, after admitting the offence, he told officers he spent £20 a day on the drug and was in debt to his dealer.

He said a friend had told them how it easy it was to take the cable and they had climbed over a partly damaged fence to get onto the site.

He was intending to take the cable to a scrapyard to sell it and use the money to buy more cannabis.

It was also revealed that the pair had hired the angle grinder from HSS Hire and it needed to be back on the Monday after the incident.

Both men had pleaded guilty to theft and criminal damage charges at an earlier hearing on October 12 and following a Newton hearing on November 12 it was ascertained that they had taken and damaged 77 metres of cable worth £7,700.

However, a representative of Prysmian said the amount was 90 per cent recoverable if the cable was sold for scrap and no compensation application was made.

A report from probation officer Jonny Belbin said Hodkinson, a father of one, had worked as a car parts manufacturer but had developed a "significant problem" with cannabis that meant he smoked 10-15 joints per day.

He added Edwards had worked as a bricklayer but was struggling to find work and look after his and his partner's six children.

"This was a hair-brained scheme," said Alun Williams, defending.

"Don't use your own van and don't hire an item from HSS in your name and drop it at the scene.

"The bit they did cut off was too big to put in the van anyway so these are not master criminals and clearly they haven't thought this through."

District judge Gwyn Jones said: "This was a hair-brained idea but you did put some thought into how you were going to get some money.

"You hired a saw and used information you received from others about how to get into the site, so there is a significant degree of pre-planning which means there is a high degree of culpability and the potential for profit was significant.

"It may be scrap metal but it is a highly valued commodity and when it is stolen it has an impact on the community."

Telling Hodkinson his cannabis addiction was "totally out of control", Mr Jones sentenced him to 26 weeks imprisonment, suspended for a year and ordered him to take part in a six month drug rehabilitation programme.

Hodkinson will also be tagged for eight weeks and pay £200 costs and a victim surcharge of £115.

Edwards was also jailed for 26 weeks, suspended for 12 months and will have to carry out 190 hours of unpaid work, pay costs of £200 and a victim surcharge of £115.