A Blackwood man who stole £70,000 from parking machines he was employed to fix has been sentenced to two-and-a-half years.
Arthur Blay, 48, stole the cash from machines between 2002 to 2008 when he worked for Bristol City Council as a parking meter repairman.
Council bosses became suspicious of Blay when he reported that 82% of the machines he worked on had jammed.
Blay had managed to jam the machines himself in a way in which he could steal the money without it registering.
He was eventually caught when coins were placed in machines that were covered in dye only visible under ultra-violet light.
Blay pleaded guilty to two counts of theft from parking meters, one of possessing criminal property and 21 of converting criminal property. He was sentenced at Bristol Crown Court.
A spokesman for the council said: “Bristol City Council welcomes the sentence. It has strengthened its procedures to ensure careful management of staff responsible for repairing machines containing cash.”