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Railway graffiti vandal jailed for 18 months

10:21am Friday 30th April 2010 in


A vandal who caused £50,000 of graffiti damage on trains across the country, including at Westbury, has been jailed for 18 months.

Thomas Stanley, 20, of Silver Hill, Tenterden, Kent, was found guilty on all 12 charges put to him. He was convicted after attacking and damaging trains over a three year period from between December 2005 and September 2008 A train at Westbury was targeted by Stanley on May 5 2006 whilst other attacks were recorded at Folkestone, Faversham, Ashford, Redhill, Surrey and at Manchester Piccadilly.

Stanley’s crimes came to a halt when he was arrested by British Transport Police (BTP) and his Tenterden home was searched. Pictures of the damage he had caused were found to have been posted on the internet using his home computer and graffiti items were recovered from the property.

Stanley gave answers of no comment when questioned by investigators and later, in court, declined to give any testimony when summoned to the witness box.

Detective Constable Will Livings, of BTP’s Graffiti Unit, said: "Those who commit graffiti offences often believe that their work is art – sadly when the chosen canvas is railway property it cannot be considered art and is nothing more than wanton damage that costs thousands of pounds to clean up.”

"Writing graffiti on the railway or elsewhere is not a harmless pastime and we will continue to work closely with train operating companies, Network Rail and other police forces to crack down on these criminal acts."

A Southeastern trains spokesman said: “Not only does this vandalism have a financial implication but it also means that the trains have to be taken out of service to be cleaned.”

Comments(27)

Vox Pop says...
10:52am Fri 30 Apr 10

No-one is suggesting that he does not fully deserve his 18-month stretch for criminal damage on that scale on the railway. But cast your minds back to a year or so ago when two young vandals were convicted of placing an industrial-sized wheelie-bin on the railway tracks at Trowbridge station causing much damage to a freight train which hit it - though fortunately without derailment. That could so easily have been a passenger train which might have been derailed, injuring or even killing many people. And yet both of those morons escaped jail and the younger idiot even escaped public naming due to his age. The only danger the graffiti artist faced was to himself - and many would shed no tears if he was hit by a train. And yet the danger the other two cretins presented to the travelling public and rail employees was immense. I stated at the time that the CPS should have appealed against that ridiculously lenient sentence. And this case just reinforces that view.

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Russell Hobbs says...
11:40am Fri 30 Apr 10

The sentence is not warranted. The only reason this guy got a custodial sentence is because of the corporate factor.
-
A community based sentence of cleaning up public areas would have been far more appropriate.

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WiltshireLeppard says...
11:53am Fri 30 Apr 10

Pity we can't spray 'loser' on his forehead in non-drying paint.

Bring back the cane!

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onthesofa says...
12:24pm Fri 30 Apr 10

Too right,the cane made more people afraid of misbehaving than this crappy sentence,he should spend the next few years paying money back for the cleaning needed,also of course the two lads that could of caused an accident should of been given a decent stretch.

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Russell Hobbs says...
1:24pm Fri 30 Apr 10

'the cane made more people afraid of misbehaving than this crappy sentence,'
-
For someone who claims to work with people with mental health problems you really do not have a clue do you? Violence will always breed violence. The only thing the cane taught me was how to hate back double.

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norville says...
2:38pm Fri 30 Apr 10

Ah yes that old comic book villain back double or 2 backs at he was better known. my personal favourite was the terrible testes twins

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Russell Hobbs says...
4:43pm Fri 30 Apr 10

You mean 'Testi Calls'?

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WiltshireLeppard says...
6:02pm Fri 30 Apr 10

No Russell, he means Jenny Talia.

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onthesofa says...
6:12pm Fri 30 Apr 10

From the mentality of Hobbs comments,i pity what his kid is growing up with.when the cane was used as a punishment there were not half as many crimes.It is nothing to do with making you hate double back,either you are the sort of person who has respect and dignity or not.Just like now,some people are brought up and some are dragged up.

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Russell Hobbs says...
6:18pm Fri 30 Apr 10

'not half as many crimes'? You stupid girl take your rose coloured specs' off. What era did the Krays and Myra Hindley come from? They were all thrashed daily and just look at what happened.

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onthesofa says...
6:24am Sat 1 May 10

Statistically,there were not the number of serious crimes compared to the number we have now,in this slap on the wrist and let them off era.People would be a lot more cautious if we still had the death sentence.

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Russell Hobbs says...
10:16am Sat 1 May 10

You mean grafati artists wouldn't write on trains if there was a death penalty? What on earth are you taking?

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onthesofa says...
10:41am Sat 1 May 10

Serial name changing is a very serious problem,especially try
ing to associate your name with a councillor you seem to have a serious obsession with,very sad.I dont need to take anything thank you.Common sense is either something you have or you dont.As is dignity and respect.It is of serious concern that someone with this attitude has a responsibility at home like you say you do,or is that yet another pork pie.

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Russell Hobbs says...
12:26pm Sat 1 May 10

You get dafter by the minute. As far as I am aware Russell Hobbs make kitchen appliances. Have you been stealing the patients drugs again?

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onthesofa says...
12:39pm Sat 1 May 10

Self denial and inability to answer questions,bad signs my dear.You always give yourself away with your bad attitude,abusive language on this site as well as your pork pies you tell.Try keeping one name for a week if that is possible.Anyway you are very boring now and this has nothing to do with the stories,some of us have better things to do with their lives than this,you are obviously one of those people who cant stand not having the last say,now go and spend time with your child you claim to have.I wont be bothering answering to your pathetic jibes anymore as this is a site to write about the stories and what you think about my ideas is of no importance,now go have some fun winding yourself up.

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Russell Hobbs says...
12:49pm Sat 1 May 10

Do go away you silly cow. You're mad as a fruit cake.

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cynical old anarchist says...
10:03am Sun 2 May 10

Wherever the Death Sentence is implemented, all around the World, it is proved to have no effect on Murder levels at all. Murderers are not genererally thinking of consequences when they kill someone. So Capitol punishment is no deterrent at all. Unless of course, (And this wouldn't surprise me at all)
you are suggesting we make graffitti
a Capitol offence.

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cynical old anarchist says...
10:12am Sun 2 May 10

onthesofa wrote:
From the mentality of Hobbs comments,i pity what his kid is growing up with.when the cane was used as a punishment there were not half as many crimes.It is nothing to do with making you hate double back,either you are the sort of person who has respect and dignity or not.Just like now,some people are brought up and some are dragged up.
Are you suggesting that if Mr Hobbs were to thrash his kid regularly with a stick, then he would be a better parent? Is that where "respect, and dignity" come from then? Or just fear, and hate?
Were he to do this, then you would be guilty of inciting an assault on a minor,
and would (quite rightly) be facing Court, a Criminal record, and a possible Prison sentence.

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cynical old anarchist says...
10:24am Sun 2 May 10

onthesofa wrote:
Serial name changing is a very serious problem,especially try
ing to associate your name with a councillor you seem to have a serious obsession with,very sad.I dont need to take anything thank you.Common sense is either something you have or you dont.As is dignity and respect.It is of serious concern that someone with this attitude has a responsibility at home like you say you do,or is that yet another pork pie.
In what way, exactly does your mind come to the conclusion than serial name changing on a forum such as this, is in any way, a serious problem, to anybody? And what attitude is this?
Disagreeing with you? You spend half your time on this forum, sniping at poor Russell, and yet, you still maintain that he is the one with the attitude. Despite his wonderful range of Kitchen Electrical goods. Well, "On the sofa" (If that is even your real name) wouldn't your time be better spent addressing your obvious obsession with this person? It's getting to be a little predictable, and regular. As a so called mental health professional, surely you must see that this is not healthy?

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onthesofa says...
10:37am Sun 2 May 10

Cynical old anarchist unless you have changed your name as well,you have not been here long enough to see the abusive posts Hobbs throws at not just me but a lot of others.You can always tell when his name changes as he gives himself away with certain shortened rude abbreviations.Mind you of course you probably are the same person using a different name to agree with your own comments again,it would not be the first time.Anyway i am not really interested in your thoughts as from now on i will be commenting on the story, not replying to petit comments a few like to post.You go and try to find someone else to attempt to wind up now as i am off to work.

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cynical old anarchist says...
11:28am Sun 2 May 10

onthesofa wrote:
Cynical old anarchist unless you have changed your name as well,you have not been here long enough to see the abusive posts Hobbs throws at not just me but a lot of others.You can always tell when his name changes as he gives himself away with certain shortened rude abbreviations.Mind you of course you probably are the same person using a different name to agree with your own comments again,it would not be the first time.Anyway i am not really interested in your thoughts as from now on i will be commenting on the story, not replying to petit comments a few like to post.You go and try to find someone else to attempt to wind up now as i am off to work.
A little bit paranoid aren't you? I assure you I have never used more than one name, and why on earth would I feel the need to agree with my own comments? Of course I agree with my own comments. I wouldn't have posted something I didn't agree with would I?

And it's not like you to stick to the thread. I'll believe it when I see it.

And I really haven't made any particular effort to wind you up, m' Dear. That would be unneccesarily cruel, and pretty pointless, as you seem to be halfway up the pole already.

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fifionthefarm says...
11:44am Sun 2 May 10

On a sofa,surely if you work with sick people you are aware of mind games,seriously the comments on here are not worth answering to so i would not bother.I come across people in my sales job every day who think they are one step ahead of you when they are not.There are a lot of bored and insecure people out there who like to try and irratate people.Seriously though dont bother with it,walk away the saner one like i do in my job.

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Looby Loo says...
10:02pm Tue 4 May 10

Russel Hobbs and onthesofa.....you two really need to get a room!!!!!!!! Lets have more constructive comments about the stories your MEANT to be commenting about please.

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fifionthefarm says...
6:25am Wed 5 May 10

Old anarchist,onasofa and Hobbs you are all obviously a bunch of miseries and all need to get lives and comment on the stories like the above states.All of your lives must be very inadequate to have so much time to post crappy comments.

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Russell Sofa says...
10:28am Wed 5 May 10

fifionthefarm wrote:
Old anarchist,onasofa and Hobbs you are all obviously a bunch of miseries and all need to get lives and comment on the stories like the above states.All of your lives must be very inadequate to have so much time to post crappy comments.
Nah, we just like taking the p1ss out of people like you fifi. MOOOOOOOO!

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Russell Sofa says...
10:28am Wed 5 May 10

fifionthefarm wrote:
Old anarchist,onasofa and Hobbs you are all obviously a bunch of miseries and all need to get lives and comment on the stories like the above states.All of your lives must be very inadequate to have so much time to post crappy comments.
Nah, we just like taking the p1ss out of people like you fifi. MOOOOOOOO!

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duncancumming says...
12:05pm Sun 16 May 10

Thought some people might like to see an example of the graffiti done by the guy in question:
http://www.flickr.co
m/photos/duncan/4610
680203/

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