Sycamore Gap sentencing to be televised

THE sentencing of Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers, the two men found guilty of felling the iconic Sycamore Gap tree, will be televised when it takes place in July.

- By OWEN YOUNGER

At Newcastle Crown Court on Friday morning, when the two men were given the jury's verdict, the judge told jurors that 'they are welcome to return to watch the sentencing hearing,' adding that 'her remarks will be televised.'

With the value of the National Trust owned tree originally estimated at £622,191, and the damage caused to Hadrian’s Wall by its fall was being assessed at around £1,144, it is unclear exactly what sentences the two men could face.

Chris Knox, defending Graham, told the court 'prosecutors have shifted from their original estimate of more than £600,000 to a figure of around £450,000' adding that his figure is 'much lower than that, maybe around £150,000.