Holidaymaker who “stole” pebbles from Cornwall beach threatened with prosecution

A holidaymaker has been forced to drive hundreds of miles to return pebbles he “stole” from the beach after the local council threatened him with prosecution.

The incident occurred in Crackington Haven, Cornwall where beach pebble theft has become so common that the parish council were forced to put up several signs warning it is illegal.

The case emerged after visitors complained that they were being "aggressively" threatened with prosecution for taking stones home at the Cornish beauty spot.

Removing stones from public beaches is illegal under The Coastal Protection Act 1949 and St Gennys Parish Council have warned that visitors who are found to be doing it could face a fine of up to £1,000 for leaving the area exposed to erosion.

Parish clerk Barry Jordan said: "Those who saw the damage of the floods a few years ago know what water can do, take away the pebbles and the haven would be damaged during every storm.”

Mr Jordon told The Telegraph that the council are not willing to name the gentleman due to data protection reasons.

However, critics have claimed the signs - which were installed in late July - are heavy handed and spoil the beach.

In one case, the council traced a holidaymaker back to his home hundreds of miles away and threatened him with prosecution, resulting in the man driving a carrier bag of stones all the way back to the beach.

The council removed two of the four warning signs on Tuesday due to the backlash.

Local artist Jen Dixon described the decision to erect signs as "a shame,” adding: “We must have such a problem with stone theft that the beach is now littered with large red and yellow signs threatening prosecution.

"They are so darn ugly on our beautiful beach.

"It seems very heavy-handed to have that so many signs."

This new approach comes three years after a local council were forced to microchip flowers and shrubs due to people stealing them from public parks.

Devon District Council said they experienced such “severe” theft of public plants that council gardeners resulted in microchipping them as a deterrent.

Local Jackie Carpenter, who lives near Crackington Haven beach in Cornwall, said the signs “ruin the 'beautiful place' view”.

“They also provide a horrible 'police-state' sort of environment,” she added.

Lisa Ward, who also lives in the Crackington Haven area, said: "I have overheard visitors walking onto the beach commenting on how aggressive they look".

Cornwall Council which owns 57 of the county's beaches said it "strongly urged visitors not to remove stones or sand".

A spokesperson said: "It may seem harmless but given the many thousands of visitors to Cornwall's beaches every year every stone removed could have an impact on coastal erosion, natural flood defences and wildlife habitats".