 Paul Bannatyne and Mark Rickards arrive at Manchester Crown Court |
Two men have been sentenced to ten months in custody each for causing damage put at about �45,000 by etching graffiti on trains. Mark Rickards, 19, and Paul Bannatyne, 20, from Poynton, Cheshire, put their signatures - or "tags" - on trains used on the Manchester to Poynton line.
The pair are among 26 people arrested during a two-year operation by British Transport Police (BTP).
They were sentenced for criminal damage at Manchester Crown Court on Thursday.
The court heard that 11 of the 17 trains run by First North Western between Poynton and Manchester had to be replaced because of the damage caused by Rickards, of Vernon Road, and Ballatyne, who lives at Spinners Lane, Poynton.
During the operation by BTP, 100 offences were detected by officers, costing an estimated �250,000 and Network Rail property.
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