A CRIME proceeds application against a thieving security company worker has been withdrawn after an inquiry into his means.

David Burn worked for a company paid to store metal castings for Caterpillar, the articulated truck manufacturing plant in Peterlee.

But, Durham Crown Court heard he stole castings worth £129,501 and sold them as scrap for just £9,679 in seven visits to a local dealer, between March and May 2017.

The court was told Burn tried to shift the blame onto other innocent employees telling police he was “acting on instruction”.

Burn, who worked for the company as a warehouseman for seven years, quit when his offending came to light.

The defendant, 44, of Lily Street, Sunderland, admitted theft by employee and was jailed for 32 months at the court in November.

Proceeds of crime inquiries have followed, but as he is now assessed as having no assets, confiscation proceedings have been withdrawn.