India has a serious problem with electricity theft, but a shocking example from the UK has drawn attention from all over the world. A man stole so much electricity from his neighbours that his young daughter had to work to help sustain the family. This unprecedented incident has sparked outrage and highlighted the severe consequences of such crimes.
According to the BBC, an electrician had been told to repay 4,000 pounds (Rs 433138) to his neighbours after stealing their power by diverting the supply to his own home. Leslie Pirie, from Tayport in Fife, set up the elaborate system using a device hidden behind a picture frame.
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Dundee Sheriff Court heard that Hugh and Tracy Torrance's bills were so high they had to get their teenage daughter to work to help fund the payments. Pirie, 51, admitted stealing electricity between July 2017 and August 2020. He was given more than eight years to repay 40 pounds per month.
Investigators discovered that a family was unknowingly funding both their neighbour's and their own electricity bills. Pirie punched a hole in the plasterboard and connected it to Mr. Torrance's metre before hiding a Henley block, which separated the supply, under a framed painting.
Solicitor John Boyle stated the neighbours were out 4,000 pounds due to Pirie's electricity theft. Although they are still neighbours, their relationship is strained. Fife Council seeks to evict Pirie from the three-bedroom house he has lived in alone since his mother's death in 2010. Pirie, willing to repay in modest instalments due to unemployment, was admonished by Sheriff Morag Fraser and ordered to repay the couple. Mrs Torrance expressed disappointment, saying they thought he was a nice guy.
