Mountain gendarmes caught two men while they were loading 20 spruce saplings illegally cut in the Bucegi Mountains into a car

Two men, aged 27 and 57, were caught by mountain gendarmes on Tuesday while loading into a car 20 spruce saplings illegally cut from the protected area of Bucegi Natural Park, in the Dichiu area of Dâmbovița County.

The incident was observed by gendarmes from the Peștera Post, who were on patrol. They saw two people loading several fir trees into a passenger car and intervened to check the situation.

According to information gathered at the scene, the two men allegedly cut the saplings using a hand saw. Spruce is a softwood, making such an operation possible, even though it involved cutting down a large number of trees.

When asked by the gendarmes what they intended to do with the saplings, the two said they planned to use them to organize a wedding. In Romanian tradition, the fir tree is associated with prosperity and is used in certain marriage-related customs.

Cutting trees in a protected natural area is subject to special regulations, and the authorities are to determine the legal measures in this case.