TWO pals used a chainsaw to chop down the iconic Sycamore Gap tree in an act of “mindless vandalism”, a court heard.
Daniel Graham, 39, and Adam Carruthers, 32, took just two minutes and 41 seconds to fell the tree which had stood next to Hadrian’s Wall for more than a century, the jury was told.
PATwo pals allegedly cut down the iconic Sycamore Gap tree[/caption]
PADaniel Graham and Adam Carruthers took less thank three minutes to fell it, jurors heard[/caption]
They videoed their “moronic mission” on a mobile phone and then shared the footage, it was said.
And when the shocking crime triggered headlines around the world, the pair were said to have gleefully swapped online news stories about it and gloated: “Here we go”.
The friends, who had felled other large trees, allegedly used an expert “hinge and wedge technique” to chop it down.
They cut out a wedge so the 49ft-high sycamore would fall in a certain direction– onto the 1,900-year-old Roman wall, Newcastle crown court heard today.
The friends took that wedge home with them in the boot of Carruther’s black Range Rover as a “trophy” of their crime, the jury heard.
Prosecutor Richard Wright KC said: “For over a century, a Sycamore tree had stood in a dip, next to Hadrian’s Wall.
“The tree became a famous site, reproduced countless times in photographs, feature films, and art.
“It was held high in the affections of so many members of the public had come to be known as the ‘Sycamore Gap’.
“By sunrise on Thursday 28th September, 2023, the tree had been deliberately felled with a chainsaw in an act of deliberate and mindless criminal damage.”
At 5.20pm on Wednesday September 27, 2023, Alice Whysall Price took the last known picture of Sycamore Gap while it was still standing during a walking holiday in Northumberland.
Daniel Graham has denied the chargesNNP
He is on trial alongside Adam CarruthersNNP
Later that night Carruthers and Graham linked up and made the 39 minute journey from Carlisle to Steel Rigg car park on Hadrian’s Wall, Newcastle Crown Court heard.
A grainy black and white video of the felling of the tree was played to the jury as the two defendants watched impassively from the dock.
Although it had been enhanced, the video was poor quality.
But a figure could clearly be seen at the foot of the tree and the unmistakable sound of a chainsaw could be heard.
The tree fell onto Hadrian’s Wall at the end of the two minute, 41 seconds video.
Mr Wright said: “They parked, walked to the tree, and then used a chainsaw to deliberately fell it. The technique that they used showed expertise and a determined, deliberate approach to the felling.
“They marked the intended cut with silver spray paint, before then cutting out a wedge that would dictate the direction in which the tree would fall.
“One of the men then cut across the trunk, causing the Sycamore to fall, hitting the wall. Whilst he did that, the other filmed the act on Graham’s mobile telephone.
“Though the tree had grown for over a hundred years, the act of irreparably damaging it was the work of a matter of minutes.
“Having completed their moronic mission, the pair got back into the Range Rover, and travelled back towards Carlisle.
While on the journey home, Carruthers received a video of his young child from his partner.
He allegedly replied to her: “I’ve got a better video than that.”
The jury heard the pair also joked about “an operation like we did last night” the day after the felling.
Dad-of-two Carruthers allegedly sent Graham a Facebook post that stated: “Some weak people that walk this earth disgusting behaviour.”
Graham then replied with a voice note saying: “Weak… f***ing weak? Does he realise how heavy s**t is?”
Mr Wright said this was “the clearest confirmation, in their own voices, that Carruthers and Graham were both responsible for the deliberate felling of the tree and the subsequent damage to Hadrian’s Wall”.
Graham, of Carlisle, who ran a groundworks firm, and mechanic Carruthers, who also worked in property maintenance, of Wigton, both Cumbria, deny causing £622,191 worth of criminal damage to the tree and £1,144 worth of criminal damage to Hadrian’s Wall, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The trial continues.
APThe tree had grown for over 100 years[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
