Sycamore Gap pair were quizzed by police over homophobic attacks days before chopping down iconic tree

The men who chopped down the iconic Sycamore Gap tree were investigated implicit homophobic attacks days earlier it was felled.

Daniel Graham, 39, and Adam Carruthers, 32, were arrested aft a container of icing sweetener was hurled into a man's car astatine a layby utilized by cheery men seeking intersexual encounters.

When Graham was arrested for the Sycamore Gap outrage, rumours began sweeping his colony that helium was being interviewed successful transportation with the execution of a cheery antheral in Carlisle.

These proved groundless but constabulary were astatine the clip looking intimately astatine him and Carruthers implicit a bid of attacks successful the layby astatine Brampton, Cumbria, astir 20 miles from Sycamore Gap.

After a twelvemonth the Crown Prosecution Service decided to instrumentality nary further action, citing evidential issues.

A achromatic 'jeep' had been reported to officers from Cumbria Police from a witnesser to the layby attacks - and its fig sheet varied by conscionable 1 missive from Graham's achromatic 2009 Range Rover, which helium and Carruthers utilized successful their 'moronic mission' to Sycamore Gap.

The icing sweetener onslaught occurred connected September 18 2023 - conscionable 9 days earlier the Sycamore Gap vandalism.

The unfortunate of the incidental told the BBC: 'There was a sound connected my window. I looked crossed and determination was this achromatic jeep, truthful I coiled my model down and the rider got rather homophobic with me.'

A container of icing sweetener was past thrown into the man's car earlier the different conveyance was driven off.

The unfortunate said helium had reported the incidental to constabulary the aforesaid night, giving officers a statement of the conveyance and his recollection of the registration number.

He was, however, incapable to springiness a affirmative recognition of the men involved.

The antheral said helium wished constabulary had utilized akin fig sheet designation cameras that snared Graham and Carruthers for Sycamore Gap.

He added: 'They knew the date, they knew the benignant of conveyance it was, but they didn't bash anything.'

Cumbria Police said checks had been carried retired utilizing the registration fig provided by the victim, but the car had not been successful Cumbria that night.

However the registration sheet differed by a azygous letter.

The unit said that it had been a 'complex probe and each evidential opportunities were explored.'

When constabulary investigated the lawsuit they recovered video footage connected a telephone belonging to 1 of the suspects which - according to the unfortunate - showed '10 oregon 12' akin attacks connected cheery men astatine the aforesaid layby successful Cumbria.

In April past twelvemonth the antheral was shown the videos, which showed homophobic maltreatment being shouted and successful immoderate cases objects being hurled.

He said a video of different antheral victim, who helium recognised, was peculiarly upsetting, saying: 'I could spot the fearfulness successful his eyes. It was rather nasty, and it was each homophobic.'

After helping constabulary place immoderate of the different men successful the videos, and confirming his ain quality successful immoderate of them, helium gave a ceremonial connection successful August 2024 but told constabulary helium could not definitively place the driver.

Cumbria Police confirmed 2 men were arrested connected suspicion of 'two assaults motivated by hate.'

In December 2024 a lawsuit was presented to the Crown Prosecution Service relating to 3 victims crossed six offences.

But the CPS decided against bringing charges owed to insufficient evidence, difficulties identifying the perpetrators and excessively overmuch clip having elapsed since 1 of the incidents.

The unfortunate who spoke to the BBC says helium was abused connected 2 abstracted occasions. He decided to situation the CPS decision, which meant helium had to beryllium told the suspects' names.

In emails to the victim, detectives picture the CPS determination arsenic 'disappointing' and sanction Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers arsenic the suspects.

The unfortunate said: 'I knew the names were successful my caput somewhere. I Googled it and my words were 'oh my God', I realised who they were.'

Despite his appeal, the archetypal ruling not to complaint the men was upheld.

The CPS said it encouraged victims of hatred transgression to study incidents to the constabulary and that it would prosecute whenever its ineligible tests were met.

A spokesperson from Cumbria Police said 'Cumbria Police tin corroborate we received 2 reports of assaults, motivated by hate, reported to person taken spot adjacent Brampton betwixt September and October 2023.

'Enquiries were carried retired including conveyance checks against a registration fig provided by the victim, nevertheless this established the conveyance related to the registration fig provided had not been successful Cumbria.

'Following further enquiries 2 men aged 39 and 32, were aboriginal arrested successful transportation with the incidents.

'Cumbria Police thoroughly investigated each allegation of homophobic maltreatment reported.

'This was a analyzable probe and followed aggregate lines of enquiry to stitchery grounds and found the circumstances of the reports.

'Following each evidential opportunities being explored and enquiries conducted, a broad lawsuit including 4 different crimes, was prepared and presented to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) for a charging determination successful December 2024.

'The CPS recovered insufficient grounds to proceed to prosecution.'

When Daniel Graham was arrested successful October 2023, neighbours believed helium had been questioned astir the execution of Paul Taylor, 53, from Annan, Dumfries and Galloway, who died earlier that month.

Mr Taylor, a joined man, had involvement successful enactment with men and had been utilizing the Grindr app to put concealed dates.

A neighbour of Graham's successful Grinsdale Bridge, adjacent Carlisle, said: 'When the constabulary started searching Graham property, everyone thought helium had been arrested successful transportation with Paul Taylor's murder.

'I don't cognize however that started but his assemblage was yet recovered successful woods 5 miles from here.

'It proved to beryllium incorrect and idiosyncratic other was convicted for it, but erstwhile it turned retired they were looking into the decease of a histrion and not a idiosyncratic that turned retired to beryllium rather a surprise.'

Graham was not connected to Mr Taylor's murder, which yet saw Jack Crawley, 20, of Carisle, sentenced to beingness with a minimum word of 37 years.

During a constabulary interrogation astir the Sycamore Gap attack, Graham reacted angrily to a proposition from a detective that his 'best pal' Carruthers would enactment implicit astatine his caravan.

In the interview, which was played during the trial, Graham said: 'Are you trying to accidental we are poofters oregon something? No helium doesn't enactment over, decidedly not.'

Graham, from Grinsdale Bridge, and Carruthers, of Wigton, some Cumbria, are connected remand awaiting condemnation for transgression harm to the Sycamore Gap histrion and Hadrian's Wall connected July 15.

Jurors recovered the brace blameworthy aft their relationship degenerated and they tried to pin the blasted connected each different successful court. The verdicts were delivered aft 5 hours of deliberations. 

They drove for 30 miles done a storm, past filmed themselves cutting down the iconic landmark successful the aboriginal hours of September 28, 2023. Carruthers past forwarded the video to his spouse arsenic they fled the scene.

The pursuing morning, erstwhile quality broke of the vandalism, the brace shared societal media posts astir the histrion with Graham saying to Carruthers 'here we go,' arsenic they 'revelled' successful quality reports astir the crime.

Graham and Carruthers were recovered blameworthy of causing £622,191 of transgression harm to the histrion and £1,144 of harm to Hadrian's Wall, a Unesco World Heritage Site. 

Both defendants stared consecutive up and showed small emotion arsenic the blameworthy verdicts were work to the court.