A bungling thief who was caught stealing a jet engine claimed he thought he was taking air conditioning units.

Father-of-three Mark Cooper, 37, described by his lawyer Oliver Saxby as having limited intelligence, carried out the theft with Rodney Matthews, 47.

The pair, both from Gorse Rise, Tooting, were nabbed by police as they fled an industrial estate with the stolen machine.

Cooper had already stolen two engines and the men were taking a third when police caught them red handed near Manston Airport in Kent.

Catherine Donnelly, defending Matthews, said he had been hit by tragedy, with his son, mother and best friend having died.

Matthews and Cooper admitted theft at Canterbury Crown Court. Cooper was jailed for a total of 30 months and Matthews for 18 months.

The engines belonged to African International Airways and were in a locked compound.

The men were caught on CCTV as they used heavy lifting gear to load them onto a lorry.

The pair had a string of convictions for theft and were jailed in 2000 for carrying out a burglary together.