Metal thieves strike on Portland to steal a piece of industrial heritage (From Dorset Echo)

Metal thieves strike on Portland to steal a piece of industrial heritage

12:00pm Tuesday 7th February 2012 in Local News By Emma Walker

FRUSTRATION: Aaron Teifel with the steam engine he is restoring

A UNIQUE piece of Britain’s industrial heritage was allegedly stolen in the latest metal theft to hit Dorset.

The large steel component said to be worth between £15,000 and £20,000 was taken from Southwell Business Park on Portland.

The metal was part of a Victorian railway steam engine’s boiler which is being restored by Aaron Tiefel of Tiefel Engineering.

Police inquiries revealed the item was taken after a van was driven to the site.

It was later sold to Dorchester-based scrap merchant Abbey Metals for around £80, which were unaware the component had been stolen or was of antique value.

It was then sold to Reliance Scrap Metal, a larger company in Poole, where it was weighed in for scrap.

Mr Tiefel said: “It’s a real blow that the piece has been stolen because it was a unique piece of Victorian British heritage that can now never be restored to its former glory.

“There were no records or documents containing details about how the item can be re-manufactured.”

Mr Tiefel, whose company works to restore railway engines nationally, was planning to work alongside neighbouring company, Sea-N-C, to restore the boiler back to use, which was set to take two years.

He had put the boiler near to the Sea-N-C site and propped the piece against the wall before it was allegedly stolen.

No-one from Abbey Metals was available for comment.

A spokesman from Reliance Scrap Metal said: “We buy a large amount of the scrap metal from Abbey Metals and it is delivered to us in bulkers.

“It would have arrived here in 26 tonnes of metal and then dumped onto a pile of around 200 tonnes.

“If we had known we could have organised a search but it had already been cleared.”

Mr Teifel has since written to Dorset Police to thank them for their rapid response and perseverance, especially PC Chris Bevins for his co-operation.

He said: “I was extremely thankful for the high surveillance provided on Southwell Business Park along with staff of site owners Compass Point in their attention in investigating the theft.”

A spokesperson for Compass Point, the owners of Southwell Park, said: “We were pleased to assist the police in their recent inquiries regarding the reported theft of property. Having extensively monitored CCTV throughout the park we were able to capture relevant details of the incident which were given to the police.”

It is hoped Tiefel Engineering will be able to manufacture a replacement component from photographs and past experience.

• A 30-year-old man from Weymouth is helping police with inquiries in relation to the theft last week.

THEFTS ON THE RISE

THE number of metal thefts reported to Dorset Police more than doubled over five years, from 753 cases in 2006, to 1,579 cases by the end of 2011.

According to LetsReycle.com, the price of stainless steel solids was £580 per tonne in 2006, and reached £1,400 by last spring.

Metal theft is estimated to cost the country £770million a year.

Chancellor George Osborne has announced a £5million task force to gather intelligence and disrupt criminal networks.

Thieves target a huge range of sources – including electricity sub-stations, power lines, bronze plaques and lead from roofs.

Dorset County Council lost over £92,000 last year due to metal theft.