Man accused of Dudley plaque theft

Memorial plaques bearing names of men from the Quarry Bank area of Dudley who died in two World Wars were stolen and sold for scrap, a court heard.

Anthony Craig Mellor, aged 28, of Windmill Hill, Colley Gate, is accused of helping to steal and sell six memorial plaques taken from Stevens Park in Quarry Bank in January.

At Wolverhampton Crown Court he denied theft and handling stolen goods.

Mr Mark Haywood, prosecuting, said Mellor, who has a young son, played a part in prising the plaques out before selling them to a scrapyard in Lye, Stourbridge, for less than £200.

He said they were taken from the park war memorial overnight between January 29 and 30 and Mellor was one of two men who sold the plaques for about £30 each to DWM Metals, Attwood Street, Lye, on January 30.

Two other plaques, and stonework on which plaques were mounted, were also damaged.

Scrap merchant Matthew Hunt, a partner at DWM Metals, and his brother Steven picked out Mellor at an identity line-up as being one of two men with the plaques.

Mellor denied being present at the theft, saying he was watching an American Pie DVD at home with his partner at the time.

The trial continues.