https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hereford-worcester-50461860
2 key themes here:
- unscrupulous detectorists
- historical impact of the find
Don't forget the "coin dealers" (aka fences), without whom the theft would have been more difficult. I've known a few coin collectors and I feel sorry for them attempting to build a legitimate collection at times like this.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hereford-worcester-50516329
blimey.....very stiff sentences
Sentences possibly aggravated by the belief that they must have known where the missing coins are - as suggested at the end of https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/nov/21/detectorists-hid-find-that-rewrites-anglo-saxon-history
I have to admit that the length of the sentences was a bit surprising, but as Duncan said a lack of cooperation in the recovery of the missing coins was probably a factor.
I would also suggest that this probably isn't the first time the men have looted a discovery in part or fully. This time the size of the horde made concealment difficult if not impossible.
Not quite sure what they received for the stuff that has not been recovered, but whatever it is might be taken off them as a result of the Proceeeds of Crime case due to start next year.
If they had declared the hoard, they could now be sharing approximately £1.5 million instead of a prison cell.