Farm Theft Duo Nabbed for £380k Machinery Heist
Aidas Cesna, 28, and Gintaras Jankauskas, 30, admitted masterminding a massive theft spree. They stole high-tech equipment worth around £380,000 from 13 farms across Essex between late September and October 2021.
Jankauskas Locked Up After Heavy Sentence
On Tuesday 15 November, Jankauskas was sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court to nearly four years behind bars – three years and 10 months. The court also ordered his car to be seized and hit him with a victim surcharge.
Cesna had already been jailed for three years in July at Chester Crown Court for the same crime. On top of that, he picked up an extra one year and six months for burglaries and thefts on Cheshire farms earlier this year.
Technical Evidence Nails Crooks at Multiple Crime Scenes
Chelmsford Crown Court revealed that police used technical analysis to place both men at 14 thefts involving GPS equipment, navigation systems, satellite receivers, computer screens, and control boxes stolen from combine harvesters, tractors, and sprayers.
Farmers Left Reeling by Costly Equipment Thefts
“Theft of GPS equipment hits our farmers hard,” said PC Samantha Smith from the Rural Engagement Team. “These systems are vital to modern farming and cost thousands to replace.
“Plus, the repairs and downtime cause serious disruption. Theft in autumn, the crucial harvest period, can be devastating and costly for farmers.”
Ashley Petchey from the Crown Prosecution Service added, “Cesna and Jankauskas carried out a spree stealing over £350,000 of vital equipment in just days.
“Rural communities nationwide have been terrorised by these crimes, leaving farmers without the tools they need and often with badly damaged machines. Thanks to Cheshire and Essex Police, the pair pleaded guilty and have been sentenced.”
