A gang of Romanian cable thieves caught red-handed after dressing in orange hi-vis jackets to pose as legitimate workmen have all been jailed for three years.
Dramatic footage shows the moment the brazen trio were rumbled after turning up in a white van and setting up plastic safety barriers before setting about plundering valuable copper wiring.
As they began cutting up cables using a power saw, the gang triggered an alarm, and a nearby police armed response unit caught them in the act.
Two of the thieves were ordered up against their van, but a third remained in the tunnel and refused to come out.
Amid fears of dangerous wires or leaking gas, plans were discussed to dig a new hole to extract Marian Agarlita, 37.
But when a dog unit was brought to the scene he surrendered and clambered out of the shaft.
The case prompted experts to warn that crime gangs – many linked to Eastern Europe – posing as contractors to evade suspicion are wreaking havoc with Britain’s infrastructure.
Soaring metal prices mean they can earn as much as £10,000 in a single night by ripping out broadband connections and selling them to unscrupulous scrap metal dealers.
Cable thief Sorin Condrache, 45, after being caught red-handed posing as a legitimate contractor to plunder valuable copper wiring
Marian Agarlita, 37, initially refused to come out of the hole until a police dog handler was brought in
The Romanian gang struck in central Birmingham just yards from a police station on January 20, 2026.
Seven cables were cut affecting 7,800 lines to different businesses and Government departments.
It’s believed around 5,000 customers in the area suffered interruptions to their phone and internet connections as a result.
Repairs costing almost £97,000 have yet to be fully completed, Birmingham Crown Court heard today.
CCTV footage shows them erecting plastic barriers before opening a manhole in a bid to dupe passers-by.
But as they began ripping into cables, causing a ‘major outage’, alarms went off at BT’s nearby offices, prosecutor David Iles said.
He said the gang had shown a reckless disregard for the consequences of their actions as both lift and fire alarms were affected.
‘One slip of their power saw could have been catastrophic to critical services,’ he said.
CCTV shows the white van gang setting up plastic safety fencing to dupe passers-by
(L-R) cable thieves Sorin Condrache, 45, Aldafin Poenaru, 49, and Marian Agarlita, 37
‘Had they not been stopped when they were then many more cables would have been cut.’
Agarlita, getaway driver Altafin Poenaru, 49, and Sorin Condrache, 45, all admitted theft.
Agarlita, of the Isle of Wight, has been in the UK for 15 years, lived in stable accommodation and was a skilled plasterer, the court heard.
His barrister, Stefan Salhan, said his client expressed genuine remorse and felt shame regarding an ‘isolated incident’.
Condrache, of Smethwick, was an ‘online trader’ who had come to the UK in 2021, his counsel, Lewis Perry, said.
He had two teenage children living in Germany.
Jas Mann, defending Poenaru, also of Smethwick, said he had been in the UK since 1999 and built a ‘successful life’ running a bar.
‘He is a grandfather and feels great shame at his involvement,’ he added.
Chopped up lengths of copper cabling found inside the van
None of the men had previous convictions.
Jailing them each for three years, Recorder Ben Close said: ‘There must have been significant disruption to businesses using all those different lines and the harm would have been greater had the alarms not gone off and the police been close by.’
Afterwards PC Charlotte Gurrey, who led the investigation, said: ‘The gang were clearly skilled, organised, and a significant amount of planning went into their efforts to steal communications cable that night.
‘Agarlita initially refused to come up, and there were discussions about having to close and dig up part of the street so that whoever went down to bring him out was not at risk from damaged cables or any gas that may have leaked.
‘They showed a complete disregard for the knock-on impact on communication within the city, but swift work from officers who were nearby and the company who called 999 after the alarm was triggered meant they were quickly arrested and have now been jailed.’
Robin Edwards, from the National Infrastructure Crime Reduction Partnership, said: ‘Metal crime is a blight on our communities, industry and has a significant impact on our daily lives.
‘Sections of the scrap metal sector operate outside the law, damage the legitimate sector, which is unacceptable and damaging to business.
‘This type of blatant and organised criminality is unacceptable and the NICRP works closely with the police, local authorities, and our partners including the legitimate scrap metal sector to combat this type of crime.’
An Openreach spokesperson said: ‘Cable theft causes real harm.
‘When phone and broadband services are taken out, it’s not just frustrating - it can leave vulnerable people without the support they rely on.
‘Putting things right isn’t quick or easy. Our engineers have to be pulled away from other vital work, repairs can take weeks, and the cost runs into thousands of pounds.
‘We take protecting our network seriously.
‘We use a range of security measures to deter theft and help catch those responsible. Every incident is investigated by our specialist security team, and our network is monitored 24/7 from our control centre.
‘That’s why we’re pleased to have worked closely with West Midlands Police and local partners on a joined‑up approach that’s delivered a positive result.’