Two charged over alleged £170k Kent farm GPS thefts

Two men charged in connection with an alleged £170,000 farm GPS theft series involving nine victims across Kent are due before Canterbury Crown Court next week.

Kent Police said high-value navigation systems were allegedly stolen from tractors and other agricultural machinery at farms across six areas of the county during July and August.

Farms in Canterbury, Folkestone, Romney Marsh, Maidstone, Sheppey and Thanet were reported to have been targeted.

The two men have been remanded in custody and are due to appear at Canterbury Crown Court on Monday 14 September.

Officers from Kent Police’s Rural Task Force identified the incidents as a linked crime series.

The investigation gathered pace in the early hours of 16 August, when officers pursued a vehicle of interest. At around 1.55am, it was brought to a tactical stop after leaving the Dartford Tunnel on the Essex side.

Two men were arrested and various items of GPS equipment were seized, according to police.

Further enquiries were then carried out at a property in Dagenham, east London, where two other men were arrested and another GPS unit was located.

Kent Police has not detailed the subsequent status of those two additional arrests in the information released. Enquiries are also continuing into possible linked offences committed outside Kent.

Kent farmer and NFU Kent Council Representative Alan Clifton-Holt welcomed the police action, saying equipment and machinery theft continues to disrupt farming businesses.

He said: “Farmers and people in rural communities continue to be victims of rural crime, which hampers food production and causes great worry, so this result is really positive.”

Mr Clifton-Holt said the impact of rural crime went beyond the financial losses suffered by farms.

He said repeated offences can also leave a lasting emotional strain on farming families and rural communities.

He added: “Collaboration is key to tackling these crimes effectively and we are working closely with officers to do all we can to help reduce the fear of crime and prevent thefts from our farms.”

The investigation comes as rural officers prepare for what police expect to be another busy autumn tackling offences affecting farming communities.

Kent Police said thefts of agricultural plant and vehicles can increase as evenings become darker and more farm equipment is in use.

Wildlife offences including poaching and hare coursing also remain a focus for the Rural Task Force.

Police Sergeant Ross Haybourne said the force works closely with farmers to tackle the crimes affecting them most.

He said: “We work closely with the farming community in Kent to tackle the issues that affect them the most and we know that certain crime types increase in the autumn when the evenings start to get darker and more farm equipment is in use.”

Kent Police said its rural teams will continue working with farmers on prevention, recovering stolen property and identifying those suspected of involvement in countryside crime.

The two men charged in connection with the alleged GPS theft series remain in custody ahead of their Crown Court appearance, while Kent Police said enquiries into possible linked offences outside the county are continuing.