POLICE this week issued a warning after rocks were deliberately placed in the middle of moorland roads around Princetown: 'Stop this lunacy before someone gets killed.'
The appeal comes after a disused building near Princetown was the target for graffiti — an attack believed to be linked with a spate of incidents involving rocks on roads into the village.
The large blue letters were daubed on the South West Water building near Rundlestone, on the Tavistock to Princetown road.
The graffiti read: 'Fence road. Protect livestock. Or rocks in road. DCA glad.'
PC Stewart Pearce, Princetown's community constable, said: 'Clearly, somebody must know who is doing this — the message is "Stop this lunacy now, before someone gets killed".'
PC Pearce appealed to anyone with information about the incidents, or the perpetrator, to contact him directly, in strict confidence.
'We want to be able to help solve the problem — in an appropriate way,' he said.
'They certainly won't get a fence put up on the road by carrying on like this — it's stupid.
'They are going about it the wrong way. They are not in any trouble yet. But if they carry on like this, they will get caught and if someone is injured, they will be in very serious trouble indeed.'
PC Pearce urged drivers to pay attention on the roads around Princetown and to stick within the 40mph speed limit.
Princetown resident Paul Beard said his wife's car wheel and trims were badly damaged after she drove over one of the rocks.
'They were placed in a position where you couldn't see them,' he said.
'Wheels you can repair — what's going to happen when someone gets seriously hurt? A motorcyclist could easily get killed.'
Jill Neal, of Princetown, also hit a stone in the road recently.
She said: 'It damaged my tyre, which went down, but I was lucky really — it could've been a lot worse.'
Brian Druett, of Dartmoor Garage, Princetown, said: 'It's definitely dangerous — if a motorbike was to hit one, it wouldn't stand a chance.
'When you look at the stones, they're not actually granite from off the moor, they're brought in from somewhere.
'They're placed right in the middle of the road — an accident is just waiting to happen.'
Princetown taxi driver Terry Finch said the rocks had been appearing on the roads for the last 14 months.
'I've taken hundreds out of the road — all shapes and sizes,' he said.
Maureen Rolls, of South West Equine Protection, who also lives in Princetown, said the actions were 'highly irresponsible'.
She said: 'Not only are they putting human life at risk, they are putting animals at risk and it's not going to achieve anything.
'There are proper democratic ways of getting things done — all they are doing is giving innocent people and animals a problem — it's absolutely horrendous.'
Secretary of Dartmoor Commoners' Council, Cherry Seage said members would like to see fencing on the Princetown road — but would use the proper channels to pursue their aim.
'We have quite a good relationship with the Dartmoor National Park. If sufficient commoners were concerned it would be a reason to set up a meeting to discuss the situation,' she said.
Mrs Seage described the incidents as 'dangerous and rather stupid'.
Dave Fisher, chairman of Dartmoor Forest Parish Council, said members were very
worried about the situation.
'It's a disaster waiting to happen,' he said.
Mr Fisher said the council had asked South West Water to ensure the graffiti is removed as quickly as possible.
Anyone with information about the graffiti or rocks on the road should contact PC Stewart Pearce at Tavistock Police Station. It is not known to what the section of the graffiti, reading 'DCA glad' refers.