A MAN accused of blowing up two phone boxes on the A64 near Malton wept in court after being convicted of conspiring with his brother to commit the offence.

The jury took just over two hours to find Geoffrey Layton guilty of two counts of conspiracy to damage property and conspiracy to steal property.

His co-accused, Peter Cheetham, was found not guilty of the offences following the hearing at York Crown Court yesterday. Layton's brother Stuart has admitted the offence.

The court heard how the Layton brothers had travelled up the A64 on a trip to Scarborough late at night and used fireworks to blow up the phone boxes, near Malton, in an effort to steal the cash boxes. Andrew Woolman, prosecuting, said the purpose of the journey was not for a trip out, as Layton had claimed, but to find phone boxes to blow up.

The court heard Layton, from Foundry Mill Mount, Seacroft, Leeds, had lied to the police about his involvement.

He said he had told his brother and Cheetham he wanted nothing to do with the incident, but when arrested by police he was found with a firework in his pocket and two others down his trousers.

Mr Woolman said: "Geoffrey Layton is a man who has told lie after lie after lie."

Layton claimed he had not left the car and that Cheetham had been involved in the two explosion along with Stuart.

But Cheetham, who suffers from epilepsy, had been found having a seizure by police in the back of the car. He was later taken to the intensive care unit at York Hospital.

Defending Cheetham, Diane Nixon said he was not the "sharpest tool in the box" and not someone you would want as part of a team to blow up phone boxes. She said: "The Laytons did not know him very well and did not know the seriousness of his epilepsy."

Geoffrey Layton was released on bail and will be sentenced at Leeds Crown Court on July 24.

It was not made clear at yesterday's hearing when Stuart Layton will be sentenced.

Updated: 10:48 Friday, June 27, 2003