POLICE were called out when a £12,000 JCB mini digger was removed from Wisbech St Mary Church of England School late at night – and they found the machine on the back of a trailer being towed by Mark Hall. Hall refused to stop as officers chased him along

POLICE were called out when a £12,000 JCB mini digger was removed from Wisbech St Mary Church of England School late at night - and they found the machine on the back of a trailer being towed by Mark Hall.

Hall refused to stop as officers chased him along the A47, and he swerved from side to side during the 15-minute pursuit.

When the Mitsubishi Shogun driven by Hall eventually came to a halt on the A1101 at Gosmoor Lane, he was arrested.

"He said he met a mate called Davy, who had put some work his way," prosecutor Ella McCluskey told Fenland magistrates on Tuesday. "He was asked to drive the trailer from the school in Wisbech St Mary."

Hall, 47, of Tinkers Drove, Wisbech, had earlier denied both stealing the £12,000 mini digger from Langwith Builders and handling the stolen item, but was convicted of the handling charge after a trial.

Hall had admitted failing to stop for the police on April 10, and driving the Shogun without a licence or insurance.

After reading a report from the probation service this week, the magistrates committed Hall for sentence before Cambridge Crown Court.