Around 400 fine 100-year-old oaks and 50-year-old spruces were cut down in a couple of nights and removed from an area around a village in the Pyrenees.

Other tree thefts have been reported in the area and police are continuing to investigate, The Times reports.

Village mayor Gérard Durand has pointed the finger at a Spanish timber company, but police believe a network of thieves could be to blame.