A MAN who stole items totalling £25,000 has been spared jail following an incident in which four horses were killed in a stable fire.

Darren Butlin was given a 12-month prison sentence suspended for two years after being found guilty of theft at a stable yard in Benington Road, Walkern, in October last year.

The 44-year-old will also have to complete 250 hours of unpaid work, Cambridge Crown Court heard on Friday.

A jury found Butlin, of Moors Ley in Walkern, guilty of stealing a chainsaw, air rifle, Honda generator, strimmer and equestrian equipment from the stables at a trial last month.

He was acquitted of arson and burglary.