A man has been jailed for stealing a quad bike from Charlton last year.

Maurice Cooper, 48, of Addison Close, Gillingham, Dorset, pleaded guilty to burglary and was sentenced to 24 weeks in prison at South East Wiltshire Magistrates’ court on Tuesday, April 13.

Jason Cooper, 46, of Fairlie, Ringwood, Hampshire, also pleaded guilty to burglary.

He given a community order where he will have to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work.

On February 6 last year, both Maurice and Jason Cooper were seen at an outbuilding at an address in Charlton loading a quad bike onto the back of a van before driving off.

Police were called by the owners and officers responding to the call spotted a vehicle matching the description of the van in Devizes.

The vehicle was stopped and both Maurice and Jason Cooper were arrested and taken to Melksham Police station while the quad bike was recovered.

PC Chris Miller said: “This is a positive result and we’d like to thank the victim for the speed in which they called us to report this and the detail they were able to provide, which assisted in us locating the vehicle swiftly.

“I hope this custodial sentence will give both the victim some reassurance and act as a reminder of the seriousness of theft and the consequences and serve as a suitable deterrent.”