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https://www.eveningexpress.co.uk/news/uk/metal-detectorists-jailed-for-stealing-viking-hoard-worth-up-to-12m/amp/ (https://www.eveningexpress.co.uk/news/uk/metal-detectorists-jailed-for-stealing-viking-hoard-worth-up-to-12m/amp/)

Well it serves them right. Idiots, one and all, and for what.

I would like to know how they got to the £3 million though. You can bet they wouldn’t have got that much had they declared it in the first place.

It does say 12 million I'm sure the tvc would have given em 3 mill if they done it proper 😁

Oh no!!!!.  They've spoiled it for the large percentage of genuine detectorists who knock doors in the hope of obtaining some permissions.  Can you imagine what landowners will think?  They'll think we're all a bunch of crooks and think twice about giving permission.  Sentences did seem a bit harsh though, considering they didn't physically hurt anyone!

 What farmers might think we are a bunch of crooks?  I think they already know that, I'm sure we've all had a few farmers that joke  about finding a hoard on there land and if you find gold let em know. (they ain't really joking you know and only last week I was asked to do a finders contract for a new 600 acre permission in herefordshire) Well anyway I've been saying for a while now that in herefordshire untected land is scarce to come by and obtaining permissions is hard cause someone's already done/doing it... And now it looks like due to media coverage that's going to get a damn site harder.

The length of their sentences are more to do with the 'theft' aspect than not declaring it - the bigger the amount stolen, the longer the term - I remember the Hatton Garden Robbers got quite a stiff sentence. British law has always been strong on property. I was surprised at the length of the sentence for the antique dealer - but he'd had prior convictions for night-hawking, which would add to his tariff. Who knows what will happen to Paul.

It was said that the items handed over had been valued at £500k - and as no one really knows what the rest of the coins were - even at £10k each (cutting the 'two emperors' type down from the £50k each mentioned in the papers) - then ~300 coins would make £3M.

As to the TVC, I ended up with exactly what I thought the coins were worth for my hoard - not in quite the same way as I got there, but still the same value. I find that the values given by newspapers are always inflated - look at those 84 'gold' coins - valued by the papers at £100k found in Ireland the other day - for a start they were all silver...….

It is about time the law came down on this type of crime. Here in Brecon there are numerous people who day hawk on regular basis, who damage the hobby for the responsible ones who ask for permission.


Makes me laugh that if they had reported the finds as most of us would as responsible detectorists, they would have been looking 4ward to a wealthy future and have their names asssociated with some historic artefacts ! Instead of  being branded thieves for the rest of their lives.


I hope the powers that b strip their houses and consfiscate everything to compensate for the coins still missing !


Brecon MDC has been active club now since 2011 we are a small club and all of us have experienced people just deciding to detect our permissions. Its going equipped to steal !


If more people were prosecuted and spent time in a cell for this crime and it is a crime, perhaps people would think twice. Its a shame that the police funding is so low.


Its indeed getting harder and harder to find undetected ground, we capped our membership to ten, how the larger clubs manage to find ground for club digs amazes me, and its going to get worse.


so I hope the law starts to come down heavily on these low lifes.

Well done dave I agree with your above comments. What saddens me the most living less than 10 miles from the site of the hoard is that it could have boosted local history/knowledge and tourism to the local area that especially Leominster sorry to say is in need of.. These thieves robbed the county and its people and as for the farmer ( I can't say robbed him as they tresspased on the land next door but they sure abused his trust OK and robbed the other farmer😁) when I spoke to him a few months ago I gather the 1st he knew was when cid turned up at his farm asking if he knew about a hoard?

D’you know what would be a nice idea. If there was a way of sending the Farmer in question a letter of apology from ALL the decent detectorists, Nation Wide, who are ashamed by the actions of these men.

Maybe the two insurance companies would like to step forward and volunteer. Come on NCMD  &  FID let’s hear from you about this.

That's quite a interesting idea there Val - wonder if NCMD and FID would do that?

I think that's the only body that should ( yes its a nice idea). I can supply contact details if wish but I don't think any individual should approach them as the farmers trust as now gone but as said from a recognised body such as fid or ncmd would. Be a good idea