Man cleared of smashing historic Roman wall

A Lincoln man has been cleared of smashing a historic Roman wall after CCTV of the incident proved to be inconclusive.

Jason James, 46, pleaded not guilty to criminal damage, saying he had been in bed all night.

He appeared before Lincoln Magistrates' Court on Thursday, accused of causing more than £6,000 of damage to the wall on Beaumont Fee overnight between 23 and 24 August 2025.

District Judge Daniel Church said: "I've spent time looking at the footage. The stills from the CCTV look similar to the defendant, but I can go no further than saying the person might be you – it also might not be. I must find you not guilty."

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the court was shown CCTV footage that captured a man removing stones from the monument, which belongs to City of Lincoln Council.

When James was arrested on 25 August, he was wearing similar clothing to the man in the footage, which the prosecution claimed was identical to the clothing captured on the video.

They also said his "distinctive ears" matched those of the person on CCTV.

Sophie Kitching, defending, said footage showing the person heading in the general direction of James's home was circumstantial.

"The footage doesn't track him to his home address, it doesn't show him entering. It ends 0.3 miles away," she said.

In court, James denied any involvement, saying the footage was too poor quality to make any details out for certain.

James told the court: "I went to bed at 10.30pm and never left until 9.30am the next morning for breakfast at Wetherspoons.

"I certainly did not cause the damage and have no idea who did."

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