Two tractor GPS thieves jailed for stealing £380,000 of equipment

TWO crooks who stole almost £380,000 worth of tractor GPS equipment have been jailed.

Gintaras Jankauskas, 30, admitted conspiring to steal equipment from agricultural vehicles at 13 farms and estates across Essex between September and October, of last year. Jankasukas, and his accomplice, Aidas Cesna, 28, were targeting GPS and other technical bits of kit in their raids. Chelmsford Crown Court heard that, through technical analysis, officers were able to place both Cesna and Jankauskas at the scene of 14 thefts of technical equipment from combine harvesters, tractors and sprayers.

PC Samantha Smith, of the Rural Engagement Team, says: “Theft of GPS equipment hits our farmers hard. Global positioning systems are a critical part of modern farming and cost thousands of pounds to replace. Then there are the additional costs and time out of operation required to repair the damage caused by thieves.

“So, thefts can cause significant harm and disruption to farm businesses, particularly in the autumn, when delays can prove extremely costly for farmers bringing in their harvest.”

Jankauskas was sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court to three years and 10 months in prison last week. The court also made a deprivation order for his car and he was ordered to pay a victim surcharge. Cesna was jailed for three years in July at Chester Crown Court for the same offence.

He was also jailed for a further one year and six months for committing a burglary, two thefts and theft from a motor vehicle on farms and estates in Cheshire between February 10 – 14 this year.

According to recent NFU Mutual figures, the national cost of claims for GPS thefts almost doubled in 2020, to £2.9m.