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A 16-year-old boy has been arrested in northern England for what police described as the “deliberate” felling of an ancient tree made famous in a Kevin Costner film.
The sycamore stood for nearly 200 years next to Hadrian’s Wall in Northumberland — a UNESCO World Heritage Site that guarded the Roman Empire’s northwestern frontier — until Wednesday night, when it was unceremoniously cut down.
Photos taken early Thursday showed the tree axed near the base of its trunk, with the rest on its side.
Northumberland National Park Authority officials said they believe the sycamore — voted the English Tree of the Year in 2016 — was “deliberately felled.”
The unidentified teenager arrested in connection with the vandalism is now facing a charge of criminal damage. Northumbria Police said he was cooperating with the investigation.
There was no immediate word on a motive for the malicious stunt.
“The tree is a world-renowned landmark and the vandalism has caused understandable shock and anger throughout the local community and beyond,” police said in a statement.
The tree at Sycamore Gap had been admired and photographed by tourists and locals for decades. Its iconic status was cemented in 1991, when it was featured in the adventure flick “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves,” starring Costner.
The movie cameo made the sycamore world-famous and earned it the nickname “Robin Hood’s tree.”
“This is an incredibly sad day,” Northumbria Police Superintendent Kevin Waring said. “The tree was iconic to the North East and enjoyed by so many who live in or who have visited this region.”
Alison Hawkins, who was walking on the Hadrian’s Wall path, was one of the first who saw the felled tree early Thursday.
“It was a proper shock. It’s basically the iconic picture that everyone wants to see,” she said. “You can forgive nature doing it but you can’t forgive that.”
Photographer Ian Sproat told BBC News his “heart was ripped out” when he saw the damage.
With Post wires
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