Four men who were arrested after being found at a scheduled ancient monument with metal detecting equipment in October last year have been given a suspended sentence after appearing at Suffolk Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 28 June. The four men, all from Norfolk, were discovered and arrested at the site in Mid Suffolk which is protected. Metal detecting on sites scheduled as ancient monuments is illegal without permission from the secretary of state for Culture, Media and Sport. The men were spotted by an officer using a thermal imaging camera on Wednesday 12 October last year and subsequently arrested on suspicion of using a metal detector on a site scheduled as an ancient monument, contrary to Section 42 of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act. The group was also found in possession of items suspected to have been from the site. Bradley Ling, 24, of Pond Lane, Surlingham, Kyle Mickleburgh, 25 of Barnham Road, Norwich, Michael Travell, 38, of Beverley Road, Norwich, and Aaron Williams, 25, of Fleeters Hill, Hingham, all admitted going to a scheduled monument equipped for theft and were each given a 16-week jail sentence, suspended for 18 months. They were also tagged for 90-days with a GPS tracker to monitor their movements, ordered to pay £399 compensation and costs and given a variety of rehabilitation activity requirements. The court also ordered the forfeiture of the coins and destruction of the metal detectors. Sergeant Brian Calver of Suffolk Constabulary’s Rural and Wildlife Crime team said: “This crime was not an opportunist moment. This was organised, planned criminality, targeting our heritage. We’ll never know just how much history and knowledge has been lost as a result of their offending, purely for selfish gain. I hope this result will make them think about their actions in future and will send a message to others that we take heritage crime seriously. These are not victimless crimes, and we’d encourage any landowners that know they are suffering from illegal metal detecting to report it, so we can target those involved.” Mark Harrison, Historic England Head of Heritage Crime Strategy said: "Illegal metal detecting is not a victimless crime. This site has been identified as the Roman town of Combretovium and is designated as a scheduled monument, a nationally important archaeological site which requires careful managing. “Unlawful metal detecting and excavation can cause damage to the buried archaeological deposits and the loss of historic artefacts and objects. We will continue to work in partnership with the police and the metal detecting community to identify those offenders who are intent on stealing from our past and to bring them to account, so we can protect these remarkable historic places for current and future generations.” Councillor Melanie Vigo di Gallidoro, Suffolk County Council’s Deputy Cabinet Member for Protected Landscapes and Archaeology, said: “Our Archaeological Service assisted the police to bring about this successful prosecution, and in turn helped to protect our local history. This is a warning to anyone thinking that illegal metal-detecting is acceptable. The council’s responsibilities include protecting our environment and collecting and curating archaeological material from excavations across Suffolk. Such illegal activity damages what we are able to understand about our local and national history.”
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