Man who advertised meter tampering to 'beat the cost of living' walks free from court

A criminal has walked free from court after advertising meter tampering on Facebook to help people "beat the cost of living" and get "free electricity".

Calvin Smith, 37, of North Tyneside, admitted abstracting electricity and was handed a 16-week suspended sentence by a judge at Newcastle Crown Court on Thursday (22 October).

Smith had initially been charged with the manslaughter of 18-year-old Leah Casson, along with her mother, 43-year-old Danielle Johnson, who also admitted abstracting electricity over a period of several months before the fire.

The manslaughter charges were dropped just as a trial was about to begin. Johnson was given a conditional discharge for abstracting electricity.

A court hearing was told the tampered meter at the property on Vicarage Street in North Shields was a suspected cause of the fire but experts could not rule out other suspected possible causes of the fire - including arson - as being less likely.

Mr Justice Cotter, sentencing, told Smith on Thursday he was “not Robin Hood” and that illegally tampering with electricity meters left people and property at risk.

Newcastle Crown Court heard Smith posted on Facebook offering his services for free, with a message saying: “Beat the cost-of-living crisis, free electricity, get your meters wired.”

Ms Casson’s mother Danielle Johnson knew Smith through her partner Craig Watson, and the defendant tampered with her pre-paid meter, allowing her to use hundreds of pounds of electricity for free between August and November 2022, the court heard.

Richard Wright KC, prosecuting, said Smith only needed 10 minutes to bypass the meter.

The prosecution said experts found the method he used was different from others and was "inherently dangerous" in that it caused components to heat up, creating a "slow-burn" effect.

Mark McKone KC, defending, said Smith, from North Shields, was seeking help with his drug addiction and his rehabilitation generally.

Mr Justice Cotter handed Smith a 16-week jail sentence, suspended for two years and ordered him to do 200 hours of unpaid work and 18 months of probation after the defendant admitted a single charge of abstracting electricity.

The judge said: "You are not Robin Hood, your thinking is warped on this.

"You justify it saying you are helping someone with limited options.

"It is a deliberate, dishonest act leaving people at risk, when fires happen in people’s houses, people die."

Northumbria Police initially treated the fire as arson, and at the time Ms Casson’s loved ones paid tribute, saying: “Leah was an outgoing, bubbly young woman who we loved so much and we can’t believe she has gone.

“Please let us grieve for her as a family and respect our privacy at this time.”

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