Sycamore Gap Vandals Sentenced for 'Moronic Mission'

The vandals who cut down England's beloved Sycamore Gap tree were sentenced on Tuesday to more than four years in prison for causing irreversible damage and serious distress. The tree stood for nearly 150 years before Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers set out on a dark and stormy night to carry out what a prosecutor called a "moronic mission" to fell the majestic sycamore, which crashed down onto Hadrian's Wall. Graham, 39, and Carruthers, 32, were each convicted of two counts of criminal damage—one for destroying the tree, the other for damaging the ancient wall. Justice Christina Lambert sentenced the pair each to four years and three months in prison during the hearing at Newcastle Crown Court.

The tree, perched in a saddle between two hills, had been known to locals for its scenic setting, but it became famous after a cameo in Kevin Costner's 1991 film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. It drew tourists, lovers, landscape photographers, and those who spread the ashes of loved ones. It was voted the English "Tree of the Year" in 2016. The two men had long denied cutting down the tree, but they changed their tune as they faced their fate, reports the AP. They both testified at trial that they had nothing to do with the vandalism, though they eventually admitted to the crime and blamed booze.

Prosecutor Richard Wright said it was a "fanciful proposition" that they didn't intend to cut down the tree or realize what they were doing. "The court can be sure they were sober, prepared and planned to do what they did," Wright said. The illegal felling in Northumberland National Park on Sept. 28, 2023, caused instant outrage. One man wielded a chainsaw while the other captured the felling on grainy video on a cellphone. The jury didn't hear evidence of a motive, but Wright suggested in his closing argument that the two had been on a "moronic mission" and cut down the tree as a joke. "They woke up the morning after and ... it must have dawned on them that they couldn't see anyone else smiling," Wright said.