A man has been cleared of his role in the theft of £102,000 of Pirelli tyres.
Barry White, 38, had admitted selling 358 tyres on eBay, but told a jury at Carlisle Crown Court this week that he had no idea they were stolen goods.
The court had already heard from Cummersdale man Mark Claxton, 55, who admitted stealing the tyres from the company's Carlisle factory in Dalston Road.
Mr White was accused of conspiring to steal between August 2013 and May 2014, a charge he always denied. The jury this morning found him not guilty.
Claxton, of The Square, was a shift supervisor for DHL on the Pirelli site at the time of the theft. He stole tyres, arranging for them to then be transported to Scotland by Graham Wait.
The jury at Carlisle Crown Court was told that Wait, 57, of Mill Road, Bathgate, has indicated he too will plead guilty to being part of the conspiracy.
The tyres were delivered to Mr White, who was told they had been bought at cost price from Pirelli. He subsequently sold them via the online auction website.
'I thought tyres had been bought at cost', Cumbria court hears
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