Fury as Romanians who stole £50,000 church lead escape prison sentences

When the parishioners of St Mary’s saw the state of their 13th century church after thieves tore lead worth £50,000 from the roof they tried to be forgiving.
But it seems even the most lenient-minded couldn’t match the mercy shown by magistrates – who let the culprits off with a 12-month community order.
Romanians Florin Stan, 24, Vergil Stan, 51, and Nicolae Birsan, 26, broke through the church’s main gates on two consecutive nights last month, helping themselves to a huge amount of lead.

Target: St Mary's Parish Church in Hinckley was targeted by a group of thieves who stole lead from the roof on two consecutive days

Thanks to CCTV and the vigilance of the churchwarden and police, they were arrested the next day.
All admitted theft when they appeared before magistrates in Hinckley, Leicestershire.

As well as walking away with  12-month community orders, they were told to carry out 55 hours of unpaid work.

And after  hearing that the trio, all from Birmingham, had ‘no means’, the magistrates made no order for them to contribute towards the prosecution costs.

The lead taken from the church of St Mary in Hinckley has not been recovered.

'Utterly dismayed': Hinkley councillor David Bill could not believe the thieves were not jailed following their court appearance

Last night there was anger in the community and claims that the lenient sentences would encourage others to take their chances and steal from churches.
David Bill, a local councillor and member of Leicestershire Police Authority, said he was ‘utterly dismayed’ that the chance to impose a tougher sentence had been lost.
‘This sentence is terrible because we rarely catch this type of criminal,’ he said.
‘Here we did manage to arrest three who admitted damaging a beautiful church and the magistrates have missed a rare opportunity to send out a clear message that this type of crime will not be tolerated.
It was as a result of the dedicated work of the churchwarden, the CCTV operator and the local police that the three criminals concerned were caught.
‘Metal thefts have been on the increase in this area for some time with 28 such incidents reported to the police this year alone.
‘I would have thought that having had such a success in catching these people, this would have been the time and place to make an example. I am appalled at what subsequently happened.’
He has invited magistrates who heard the case to meet with  members of a community safety group to explain the sentencing.
The vicar of St Mary’s, the Rev John Whittaker, was also dismayed at the sentence.
‘It’s a real shame,’ he said. ‘The police did a great job and achieved a good arrest which followed evidence and it feels disappointing that the extent of the crime doesn’t seem to be reflected in the sentences.
‘The sentence on these men seems disproportionately low.
‘To me, it sends out the message to metal thieves to keep on stealing from our churches because if you are caught you will be treated in one of the most lenient ways possible.

Community orders: The trio of thieves dodged jail terms following their hearings at Hinkley Magistrates court

‘We are now having to ask the people of Hinckley to dig deep for thousands of pounds to repair the church roof. It is money that could have been spent on the young and needy.’
The church, along with its community centre, has reported 16 lead thefts in the past 18 months.
Mr Whittaker has appealed for donations to help raise the £50,000 needed to repair the roof. He said it probably would be rebuilt with fibreglass.
The Government is trying to tackle the problem by removing the licences of any dealers found to have handled stolen metal. ~MailOnline