TWO men were lucky to avoid jail after stealing hundreds of pounds worth of cable from a railway line.
Gheorghe Pongori, of William Street in Ravensthorpe, and Ioan Singerean, of Grovesnor Street in Dewsbury, appeared before Kirklees magistrates.
The Hungarian-born men had previously admitted trespassing on the railway and stealing £500 worth of cable.
Pongori, 25, also admitted stealing £200 cable from the lines on a previous date and driving without a licence or insurance.
The cable was stolen from a railway line which runs between Wakefield and Huddersfield.
Magistrates were told that on October 5 police were conducting scrap metal dealer checks at Wilkinson’s metal recycling in Dewsbury.
They noticed Singerean, 24, weighing in a large quantity of copper cable.
He admitted the theft and took officers to Hall Lane at Thornhill where the theft had taken place.
A total of 100 metres of cable had been stolen.
Pongori had committed a similar cable theft on September 3.
Magistrates gave both men a 12-month community order, as a direct alternative to custody.
Singerean was told to complete an eight-week curfew and 100 hours of unpaid work.
Pongori was given a 12-week curfew with 120 hours of unpaid work.
His car was seized as it was used in the commission of a crime.
Both men were also told to pay a £60 victim surcharge.