Man jailed for 14 months for delaying trains for 36 hours

A MAN who delayed trains in Wolverhampton by sitting on the edge of a viaduct and claiming he wanted to commit suicide has been jailed for 14 months.

Joseph Bradley, 24, initiated a two-hour stand-off with officers when he sat on Crane Street viaduct with his legs dangling over the edge on October 14.

Refusing to come down and claiming he “wanted to end it all”, trains were put on hold while officers tried to persuade him to come away from the edge.

His actions led to trains being delayed for an aggregated 36 hours – at a cost to the rail industry of £150,000.
When reminded about the impact his actions were having on passengers using the nearby railway line, Bradley replied: “So what? They can catch a f***ing train or taxi I’m not bothered”.

After much negotiation, officers were able to move Bradley into a position where he could be safely grabbed and taken to safety.

During custody, Bradley underwent a full mental health assessment and was deemed to have no treatable illness. He was later charged with malicious obstruction and failing to comply with a sex offender notification.

Bradley, of no fixed address, admitted the offences and appeared before Wolverhampton Crown Court where he was sentenced to 14 months behind bars.
It later emerged that Bradley had previously been jailed for doing the same thing.

Sgt Mark Hudson, of British Transport Police, said: “There are people out there who are in genuine mental health crisis and who call the emergency services for help. Joseph Bradley is not one of them.

“He is fully aware of the consequences of his actions and has previously been jailed for doing exactly the same thing on three previous occasions in 2015.

“His flippant response to officers – showing a total disregard for others – is criminal in itself and we will never truly know the full impact his behaviour that day; the missed job interviews, cancelled hospital appointments or long awaited days out left in ruins.”

He said BTP was satisfied with the sentence, which he said illustrated how seriously the courts viewed such actions.

“We hope it will act as a deterrent to anyone else who thinks it is acceptable to obstruct the railway in this manner,” added Sgt Hudson.