Almost two years ago, on March 18, 2022, the four men travelled from the Sunderland area to East Riding, in Yorkshire.

Nighthawking is the illegal search for and removal of antiquities from the ground using metal detectors, without the permission of the landowners, or on prohibited land such as Scheduled Monuments.

The four men - Scott Turton, 43, Robert Armstrong, 42, Andrew Richardson, 43, and Marc Scantlebury, 40, all from Houghton le Spring, near Sunderland - entered a field in Hayton, East Yorkshire with metal detectors and spades without permission from the landowner.

The case was heard at Hull Magistrates' Court.

The startled landowner phoned the police on the trespassers, then used thermal imaging to observe the group for over 90 minutes.

When the four men noticed the police they ran across the field and laid down to avoid detection.

All four were found with a metal detector and a spade, the court heard.

The landowner reported to have inspected his field and found “a large number of holes there, freshly dug, dark soil which hadn't dried out”.

In a victim statement the landowner said “the sheer number caused significant damage to the crop” and the damage done “causes a nuisance and extreme frustration” to farmers like himself who “go to great lengths to preserve and nurture the crops”.

The location of the field is directly off a Roman road as identified on an ordnance survey map.

All four men appeared in Hull Magistrates’ Court on Friday (Feb 23) for sentencing following their hearing on January 24, 2024, where all four were found guilty of going equipped for theft and criminal damage.

Armstrong was given a suspended sentence of 21 weeks.

As Armstrong already had a suspended sentence this was activated in part for a term of four weeks from Friday (Feb 23).

Scantlebury was given a 12 month suspended sentence of 21 weeks and fined £350, ordered to make a contribution of £125 compensation, ordered to pay a statutory surcharge of £128 and £85 towards prosecution costs.

Turton was given a 12 month suspended sentence of 12 weeks in prison for going equipped, four weeks concurrently for criminal damage.

He was also fined £350, ordered to make a contribution of £125 compensation, ordered to pay a statutory surcharge of £128 and £85 towards prosecution costs.

Richardson was ordered to pay a financial order of £120, £125 compensation and a statutory surcharge or £34.

Nighthawkers jailed and fined after travelling almost 100 miles to commit their crimes on Yorkshire farm