Graffiti vandal jailed, but said London Overground train work was ‘creating a job for the person cleaning it’

A vandal has been jailed for scrawling graffiti on trains and at stations in London and claiming that he was “creating a job for the person cleaning it.”

Bacari Adams, 33, caused over £130,000 by his vandalism. He admitted being caught red-handed when he was shown footage of him writing his favourite tag on a London Overground train in January 2019 – the same tag was tattooed across his knuckles. This offence was just one of dozens such offences that he had committed.

During an interview with police, Adams said: “Sorry, I’m not going to do it again, I can’t deny catching me red-handed, only an idiot would deny that”.

At Inner London Crown Court on Wednesday 13 October, Adams, of Southgate in Enfield, pleaded guilty to conspiring to destroy or damage property and was jailed for six months.

Adams’ imprisonment was the cumulation of a long-term investigation into graffiti vandalism on London’s railway network which began in 2016. British Transport Police (BTP) officers had invested a significant amount of time investigating accounts of people trespassing onto the railway, sometimes in the dead of night, and scrawling tags on trains and other property.

BTP had built enough evidence against Adams to link him with 77 offences, all committed across the railway in London. A second man, Jake Martin, 31, was also tied to the same offences.

RelatedPosts

Appeal for witnesses of cable theft in Northamptonshire

7th August 2022

British Transport Police appealing for witnesses of Thomas Parker murder in Berkshire

4th August 2022

Northern Employees Are Now Being Trained To Spot Those At Risk

31st July 2022

BTP in Merseyside welcomes new mini officers from schools in Wirral and Liverpool.

31st July 2022

Load More

Martin, of Tottenham, was tried at the same time as Adams and pleaded guilty to the same offence. In December 2020 he had previously been found guilty of another offence and was sentenced to 15 months in prison, suspended for 18 months.

Both men were arrested at their homes in December 2018. Their phones provided decisive evidence, including pictures of their vandalism that they had kept as trophies, and text and WhatsApp messages that they sent to each other as they planned more vandalism on trains and railway property.

The damage caused to railway property totalled £133,817.

The officer leading the case, Alom Uddin, said: “This was a long and thorough investigation. We were committed to securing enough evidence to link Adams and Martin to the dozens of crimes committed across the London railway network.

“Graffiti on the railway is inherently dangerous. It often involves trespassing onto the railway lines, which can be charged with electricity, or have trains constantly passing through. It also costs the railway network significant sums of money and disrupts services while carriages are cleaned.

“We’re committed to identifying anyone committing these acts on the railway and will invest significant resources and time to ensure they’re brought before the courts.”

Where Next?

RAILADVENT NEWS
The latest railway news
RailAdvent Plus
Railway Discounts, 4k Video, pictures and more!
Competition Time!
Have you entered yet?
RAILADVENT SHOP
Railway Prints, DVD’s / Blu-Ray’s, books and more
LOCOSTOP COMMUNITY
Come and share your railway pictures
UK STEAM INFO
Upcoming mainline steam tours/loco movements
british transport police
Visit their website