In 2023, the pair cut down the almost 200-year-old tree on Hadrian’s Wall in northern England.
A British court has found two men guilty of cutting down the famous “Sycamore Gap” tree in what prosecutors called a “moronic mission”.
Newcastle Crown Court found former friends Daniel Graham, 39, and Adam Carruthers, 32, guilty of criminal damage on Friday for the 2023 felling of the tree at Sycamore Gap.
The historic tree, estimated to be almost 200 years old, stood at the centre of a dip in the landscape of Hadrian’s Wall in northern England, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, making it a popular spot for photographers and even marriage proposals.
It was also featured in the 1991 film, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.
After about five hours of deliberation, the pair were convicted on two counts of criminal damage – to the sycamore and the wall, which was damaged when the tree fell on it.
“We often hear references made to mindless acts of vandalism, but that term has never been more relevant than today,” Northumbria Police’s Kevin Waring said after the conviction.
“At no point have the two men given an explanation for why they targeted the tree – and there never could be a justifiable one,” he added.
On the night of September 27, 2023, the two men drove to the site and sliced through the trunk of the tree in “a matter of minutes”, prosecutor Richard Wright said.
“Having completed their moronic mission, the pair got back into the Range Rover and travelled back towards Carlisle” where they lived, he added.
Gale Gilchrist, from the Crown Prosecution Service North, said “in just under three minutes, Graham and Carruthers ended its [the tree’s] historic legacy in a deliberate and mindless act of destruction.
“We hope our community can take some measure of comfort in seeing those responsible convicted today,” she added.
The two men have been remanded in custody and will be sentenced on July 15.
The National Trust conservation body said the felling of the tree had “shocked people around the country and overseas, demonstrating the powerful connection between people and our natural heritage”.
Efforts are now under way to see if the historic tree can be regrown from its stump or seeds.
