THREE men suspected of ‘nighthawking’ – illegally searching for antiquities at scheduled monuments without permission – were arrested near Stonehenge.

Officers from the Amesbury policing team were called to Countess Road in the town in the early hours of Saturday morning (October 21) to reports of people carrying out the practice.

“Wiltshire Police are committed to bringing those who commit this crime to justice,” a spokesperson said.

“During the early hours of this (October 21), officers from the Neighbourhoods Team, CPT Team 2 and CPT Team 3 were tasked to an incident where nighthawking had been seen along Countess Road in Amesbury.

“Three males ran away from police upon sight, and a short while later were detained and arrested along the A303 near to Countess service station.

“A number of items were located with the males, including suspected historical artefacts, metal detectors and metal detecting equipment, all of which has been seized.”