Two years ago, two men were guilty of cutting down the UK’s “sterile crevices” tree on Friday, beating the beloved landmark, with dramatic silhouettes playing the dramatic silhouettes from a Hollywood movie in what prosecutors call “strange mission.”
The smoky mountain range is estimated to be nearly 200 years old, standing on the walls of historic Hadrian in northern England in the center of a dramatic dip in the landscape, making it a popular spot for photographers, hikers and even marriage proposals.
2 men charged in England with 150-year-old "Robin Hood" tree
That's its reputation, and its works in the 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and the cuts in September 2023 caused widespread grief and anger.
Prosecutor Richard Wright told jurors last month at Newcastle Crown Court that Daniel Graham, 39, and Adam Carruthers, 32, were responsible for the "unconscious sabotage" and deliberately cut it with a chain saw.
The cut down also damaged part of the Hadrian wall built by the Romans about 2,000 years ago and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
General vision of the accessibility gap in Northumberland, UK on September 28, 2023. (Reuters/Lee Smith)
Graham and Carruthers denied any involvement when they headed to the scene at Northumberland National Park from their home in the Carlisle area about 25 miles away. But they were convicted of two counts of criminal damage.
The men will be sentenced on July 15.
Chief Prosecutor Gale Gilchrist said: “For more than a century, nycamore Gap has been an iconic natural landmark in northeast England, bringing immeasurable joy to those who visit the region.”
“In less than three minutes, Graham and Carusus ended their historic legacy with intentional and unconscious acts of destruction.”
During the trial, a video of the "Inexplicable Mission" shot by the jury on Graham's cell phone showed a granular footage of seemingly cut down iconic trees.
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Prosecutors said the men used the wedges of the tree as trophy, and the messages sent to each other later showed that they were "intoxicated" in the global response to the incident. Their actions have no explanation.
The National Trust, a heritage conservation charity that follows the location, said last August that there were signs of life at the bottom of the tree, hoping it could continue to exist.