Metal detectorists
George Powell and Layton Davies tried to sell treasure illegally, Worcester court hears (
Steven Morris, '
UK metal detectorists guilty of theft after concealing £3m hoard'
Thu 21 Nov 2019)
Powell and Davies made the discovery on land owned by Lord Cawley near Leominster in June 2015. The Guardian broke the news of the verdicts to Lord Cawley, who could be in for a reward as the treasure was found on his property. He said: “I suppose it’s good news for me. I could possibly be in for a reward. It would be nice.”
Cawley said he had not given the pair permission to detect on his land. “What they did was illegal, they shouldn’t have done it.” He doubted the missing coins would be recovered. “I don’t suppose they’ll find them now.” Experts say the pair would have been handsomely rewarded had they handed the coins in.
Instead they are due to be sentenced on Friday along with two others who were involved in hiding the hoard. They could be given prison sentences.
It seems to me that if two spivs entered Lord Cawley's property without his permission and took his Bentleys and tried to flog them off with the help of two dodgy dealers, and they were caught, the property (all the stolen Bentleys) would be returned to him. Therefore, the Treasure is his by rights, so when an inquest is held and a Treasure award is ascertained, ALL the money should go to him, no need to share it with then "finders". Secondly Lord Cawley should sue the two individuals that removed the property for damages, it means the value of the part of the hoard - potentially its most financially valuable elements - that was not recovered (and which they still have). Whether or not he can also sue the dealers is up to his lawyers to decide.
"Experts say the pair would have been handsomely rewarded had they handed the coins in."
ReplyDeleteHopefully not, in view of the fact they didn't have the owner's permission. But it's not certain, given the Treasure Registrar's tendency to lean over backwards to avoid offending detectorists.