To report this guy to the police

[bagpuss90]

Just been speaking to my mum , her and my dad are both in their 80s . Both enjoy walking nowhere too challenging. Anyway she told me they were out walking yesterday and accidentally wandered into someone’s land. Dads not great at reading maps. She told me the land owner was very verbally aggressive and threatening towards them. Told them if they didn’t turn back he’d he’d kick their arses off his land . Dad apparently tried to ask for directions and got sworn at. Told them if they did it again they’d wish to god they hadn’t. Mum was quite upset. Okay they shouldn’t have been there. But AIBU in thinking this is really no way to speak to an elderly couple and totally OTT ? Should I report him ?

Is there the possibility of a mistaken identity OP? Perhaps the aggressive man mistook your parents for another couple, just a suggestion. I only mention this as we live on a farm and the amount of people who repeatedly walk all over our fields/crops despite multiple requests for them to stop is infuriating. I still agree it's no way to speak to someone, but perhaps he thought they were a couple who'd already been asked to leave and not trespass again.

I doubt the police would do much as it's their word against his, but perhaps a visit to your parents' with a booklet or leaflet of the local footpaths/walks and a nice bunch of flowers to cheer them up might be a better resolution. I hope they're okay OP 😊

Completely off topic, but I'm in the process of renovating a cottage and the amount of people I find wandering into the garden to 'just have a look' is shocking. Without exception they are all at least in their 70-80s and look genuinely bewildered when I tell them to get off my property. The entitlement to 'just have a look, not doing any harm' is quite shocking. We live in a tourist area and people think they can just wander anywhere.

Not your mum and dad obviously, but just something I've noticed. Maybe this guys had the same and is just fed up. Shouldn't have sworn though (although I'll admit I've been very close given some of the behaviour!).

He sounds like he was very OTT and there was no need to be quite so aggressive in his manner. I have to say, as a farmer, it’s fucking annoying having to repeatedly redirect idiots walkers off of my land, off of my crops and away from my livestock and back onto footpaths BUT I haven’t ever, nor would I ever, physically threaten someone (altho I expect my manner does leave a lot to be desired some days). That being said, I think it would be pointless and just cause more stress for your parents to contact the police.

My grandparents are long gone, my parents are a similar age to OPs.

They also live in the countryside, and like walking. If they were on someones land because they can't stick to a public footpath reliably, knowing they're shit at reading maps and they got told to leave and sworn at, I wouldn't feel the need to call the police, no.

Told them if they didn’t turn back he’d he’d kick their arses off his land .

They didn't turn back, they asked the shouty abusive vile cross man for directions. Never going to end well.

Told them if they did it again they’d wish to god they hadn’t.

There are plenty of reasons he may have not wanted people walking over his land, we don't know any of them and he's within his rights to ask them to leave immediately.

Yes it would have been better if he'd have been polite, but it's not your right to demand a polite reception when trespassing.

What about threats of violence? Did you bother reading the OP properly?

Jeez.... when my 84 year old mum got lost walking while visiting friends in the countryside, the farmers who found her on their land put her in their car and drove her back to where we were staying. And I brought them some home-baked cake the next day. Surely that's the way to handle lost old people?

It honestly shocks me that so many people here think that trespassing justifies this young man's behaviour. No it doesn't.

OP I'd ask the police to make a note of the threatening behaviour in case there are further incidents but not expect any action now. Do you think that your dad may be able to use Google maps?

ThreeLocusts
that’s lovely . It shocks me too -it might be then one day

A question to OP and those that feel this 'incident' should be reported to the Police.
What's it got to do with you? As in why do YOU need to do anything. Why arent your parents able to make their own decisions and advocate for themselves? Do they want it reporting? Then let them. You can't make a statement on their behalf. You weren't there.
If they're not capable of making these decisions I'd suggesting they really outnt be going for walks in the countryside without a responsible adult with them.

It would be a matter for your parents whether to make a complaint to the police. If they are capable of going out for a walk, they are surely capable of ringing 101.

I'd be more inclined to get address from your dad and send a letter without a return address telling him he's a dick.

But deffo not a police matter.

Someone that aggressive and unpleasant who isn’t a mainstream farmer probably has something to hide on their land. You wouldn’t want to wander accidentally into an industrial scale cannabis farm 🤪.

What's the difference between 'elderly ramblers getting lost' and 'others taking the piss', in terms of biohazards, or sheep worrying or plain old 'you're in my garden' l mean. I'd guess a high proportion of trespasses are accidental. OK they weren't towing a caravan or littering but still.
I'd actually say one of the biggest differences would be that others eoild probablybsctbin a more urgent way and get off thevland ASAP instead of faffing

Don’t you mean he shouldn’t speak to anyone like that?

No need to infantalise elderly people.

Unless your parents have cognitive impairment, I’m sure they can make their own decisions about reporting an incident to the police.

My parents are both 80, active and alert. They would be quite insulted if I made patronising decisions for them or started speaking for them.

No laws were broken and although it's not very nice to be sworn at aggressively or verbally threatened, it's also not nice to have sheep separated from lambs during lambing season or, in the case of lazy dog walkers who don't pick up poo, cows aborting calves due to Neospora parasites and having to be put down. That's a cow and a calf lost due to people using someone else's land irresponsibly, and it happens a lot.

I live in a rural community and think the farmers are incredible to put up with what they do. It's shocking the way people treat the countryside.

I'm sure that farmer was at the end of his tether and hopefully your parents can choose to see it that way as opposed to an attack.

People do need to know where they're going when walking farmland. If they met a protective herd or a bull they'd seriously regret it!

JudgeRudy
They both have capacity .

StaunchMomma
Ni sheep about and it appears it wasn’t a farm

Cheshire police seem to
thinks it’s a crime:

www.cheshire-live.co.uk/news/chester-cheshire-news/chester-landowner-verbally-abused-young-17722433?int_source=amp_continue_reading&int_medium=amp&int_campaign=continue_reading_button#amp-readmore-target

Report it Op.

Yes, he was rude but , perhaps, he is fed up of people traipsing on his land?
Maybe he'd just planted some seed or had just ploughed or sprayed?

Honestly, in many parts of the country the police are so underfunded you can barely get them to do anything if your house gets burgled or you get mugged in the street, so it's naively optimistic at best to think they'll do anything because someone raised their voice and was a bit unpleasant.

I don't like it, but wouldn't the farmer be held responsible if someone had an accident on their land?

Are you talking about the bit on unauthorised encampments which makes it an offence to reside ,or intend to reside, on land, in or with a vehicle, without the consent of the occupier, where that causes or is likely to cause significant damage, disruption or distress, or the bit about trespassing for the purpose of pursuing a hare with dogs? Though I can't say I see the relevance of either.

They were a bit brazen to ask for directions Where were they going, that it entailed walking across private land and they didn't know where it was anyway?!

@bagpuss90 I would definitely speak to the police about this. It is definitely not normal behaviour. Normal behaviour would be asking someone to leave and pointing them in the direction of the public footpath. That's whether you are in a terraced house like me or a farmer with sheep-filled rolling acres.

I've skimmed your posts and can't see anything where you said he was farmer but if he was I'd be concerned he might have a shotgun licence. It's a tool of the trade if you are a farmer but anyone whose first response to finding people, particularly a couple in the 80s who have clearly got lost, is to threaten them with violence needs a talking to and maybe if that person holds a shotgun licence the police should ask themselves whether it should be withdrawn either temporarily or permanently.

If I was a police officer I would wonder why what made a young man be so aggressive towards two people who clearly constituted no threat and would want to check that everything on his land was above board for the well-being of the community.

Agree with @limitedperiodonly