A vandal has been jailed after carrying out a string of graffiti attacks on trains and buildings in Balham and south London causing approximately £97,000 of damage.

Daniel Cusack, 21, used the familiar tag KWOTE on his 25 targets which included 19 trains, two trackside walls and a house.

Cusack, from Abbey Wood, was sentenced at Blackfriars Crown Court on Tuesday (January 28) to 16 months in prison after admitting six charges of causing criminal damage.

He was tracked by his distinctive style of writing and found to have vandalised locations including Waterloo, Slade Green, Woolwich, St Johns and Dartford between 2009 and 2011.

Officers found several offences in Plumstead, close to Cusack’s address, and raided his home on July 17 2012 and he was arrested the following day.

Detective Sergeant Paddy Kerr, officer in charge of London south area crime unit, said: "I welcome today’s sentence for Daniel Cusack, who has been a prolific graffiti vandal for the past five years.

"Throughout the course of his offending his only concern was to enhance his reputation by vandalising other people’s property, hitherto showing no remorse and no regard for the law.

"Vandals cause an enormous amount of disruption and inconvenience to train passengers as the damage they commit means trains have to be taken out of service so that they can be repaired and made safe. We will always seek to prosecute people committing crimes of this nature.

"Graffiti vandals put themselves in harm’s way by going on or near the rail system when trains could be coming or tracks could be electrified. It is simply not worth the risk."

 

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