Summary
Two men, Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers, were suspects in a police investigation into alleged homophobic incidents around the same time they cut down the Sycamore Gap tree at Hadrian's Wall. Although police gathered evidence, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) decided not to press charges against them due to a lack of evidence and challenges in identifying the individuals responsible.
Key Facts
- Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers were convicted of cutting down the Sycamore Gap tree on September 27, 2023.
- They were also suspects in a series of alleged homophobic assaults in Cumbria that happened around the same time as the tree incident.
- A victim reported an incident on September 18, 2023, where he was verbally abused and had icing sugar thrown into his car.
- The victim provided police with a description and partial registration number of the suspect vehicle.
- Cumbria Police conducted an investigation but faced difficulties due to a registration number mismatch and identifying the suspects.
- Police found video evidence of other homophobic incidents on a suspect's phone and arrested two men for hate-motivated assaults.
- The CPS decided not to charge the men due to insufficient evidence and time elapsed since the incidents.
- The victim challenged the CPS decision but the decision not to prosecute was upheld.
