Amateur metallic detectorist who claimed to have dug up precious 1,800 year-old Roman horse brooch he had truly purchased on eBay is given a suspended sentence

An amateur metal detectorist who falsely claimed to have dug up an 1,800-year-old Roman horse brooch which he had purchased on eBay walked free from court today with a suspended sentence.

Funeral director Jason Price, 54, received national publicity after the copper-alloy horse figurine was supposedly unearthed in 2019.

Following the ‘find’, Price told reporters he was left ‘shaking’ after discovering what he initially thought was a piece of litter. ‘My jaw fell’, the fraudster added.

The Royal Navy veteran claimed to have unearthed the item under eight inches of soil in a heavily ploughed field at Leasingham, Lincolnshire, during a ‘Detecting for Veterans’ charity event in the summer of 2019.

The so-called ‘Leasingham Horse Brooch’ was acquired and placed on display at The Collection Museum in Lincoln after Price was paid £5,000.

After initially convincing experts, the ‘Leasingham horse brooch’ was thought to have ‘rewritten the understandings around Roman brooches’. It was said to be the first three-dimensional horse brooch to be recorded on the Portable Antiquities Scheme finds database – dating from AD 43-410.

The brooch featured on ‘Great British History Hunters’ on Freeview channel More4 after being described as the ‘first known of its kind.’

However doubts began to surface in February 2023 after Price continued to submit other items to Dr Lisa Brundle, the Finds Liason Officer at Lincolnshire County Council, from a second Roman site at Long Bennington. 

Jason Price told reporters he was left ‘shaking’ after discovering the brooch, saying he initially thought was a piece of litter

Price, pictured outside court, admitted planting the Leasingham horse brooch after buying it online, and then getting carried away with the story

When the Leasingham Horse Brooch was submitted to Historic England for tests in February 2024 they confirmed it did not pre-date the 16th Century. Price later admitted purchasing it online.

Declan Austin, prosecuting, told Lincoln Crown Court the authorities began to suspect that some of the 188 items submitted by Price had been “seeded” – terminology used in the detectorist community for being planted in the soil.

A Roman knee brooch which Price claimed to have found at Long Bennington in October 2020 and would have been the first known example of its type in England was discredited by the British Museum, and Price later admitted planting the item.

Examination of a horse figurine and axe Price claimed to have unearthed at Long Bennington in February 2023 were found to have zinc levels too high to be genuine, and a gold ring purported to be Roman contained modern levels of alloy.

Finally a hoard of Roman coins contained in pottery which Price submitted from Long Bennington as a “significant find” in August 2023 was found to have “not been buried in antiquity” after they were examined by the British Museum in September 2024.

The court heard when Dr Brundle asked to visit the site of the coin find Price told her it was closed.

Price, of Grantham, Lincolnshire, appeared in court after police carried out a search of his home in May last year and found a copy of a horse brooch.

During his initial police interview Price denied any offending. But he later asked to be re-interviewed and admitted planting the Leasingham horse brooch after buying it online, and then getting carried away with the story.

Damian Sabino, representing Price, told Lincoln Crown Court (pictured) that what was a hobby developed into an obsession for his client

 The court heard Price appeared to be motivated by a desire for the council to excavate the Long Bennington site.

Price admitted four charges of fraud by false representation relating to four claims submitted to the Finds Officer between September 2019 and August 2023.

In an impact statement which was read out in court Dr Brundle described how the “betrayal” had shaken her confidence in the authenticity of finds and had diverted time and resources from genuine archaeology.

Over 150 hours was also spent evaluating the many items submitted by Price.

Damian Sabino, mitigating, confirmed the £5,000 had been repaid and argued Price had been a man of exemplary character who had “served his country” and ran a respected local business.

Mr Sabino told the court what was a hobby developed into an obsession for his client.

“Through me he wishes to apologise to the community at large,” Mr Sabino stressed. “He no longer has that involvement with that hobby.”

Without a hint of irony, Mr Sabino added: “He is an employer. He has seven staff. An immediate custodial sentence would likely be the final nail in the coffin for that business.”

Passing sentence Recorder Nicholas Bacon KC noted the find of the so-called Leasingham Horse Brooch was initially treated as significant.

“There were very few recorded paralells of this find in the entire country,” Recorder Bacon stressed.

Price was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment suspended for two years. He must also complete ten rehabilitation activity requirement days, 150 hours of unpaid work in the community, pay £1,000 court costs and compensation of £3,250 to Lincolnshire County Council.

Recorder Bacon stressed “it was a very serious matter” which justified a custodial sentence but explained he believed Price was suitable for rehabilitation and unlikely to reoffend.