A second man has been charged after a Christmas tree was sawn down in a County Durham village.
Dominic Radcliffe, of Laburnum Terrace in Shotton Colliery, has been charged with one count of criminal damage, Durham Police has today (June 16) confirmed.
The 28-year-old is expected to appear at Peterlee Magistrates Court on July 20.
It follows an incident in Shotton Colliery where the village’s 22-ft festive spruce - which is also a war memorial to fallen soldiers from the First World War - was cut down on December 10.
The tree, which had stood in the village for more than 10 years, came down at about 11.20pm - just hours after the village had gathered for the Christmas lights switch on.
The tree is estimated to have cost thousands of pounds, with Shotton Parish Council also paying £400 every year to hang the Christmas lights around it.
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Newton Aycliffe Magistrates' Court heard how McNamara was said to have cut down the tree “as some sort of joke".
Amrit Jandoo, defending, said it was “shocking to behave in this way” but that McNamara had shown the “appropriate level of remorse” and apologised to the public and community.
McNamara was sentenced to 10 weeks in custody, suspended for 18 months, with 200 hours of unpaid work and £520 compensation.
