Dozens of stones have been removed from an historic monument to put up a hide, it was emerged.
More than 30 stones are believed to have been removed from the Carn Glas long cairn, south of Inverness following the erection of what appeared to be a bird-watching hide.
Richard Crawford, from Inverness, was one of the first to uncover the hide and says the damage to the historic site is worse than previously stated.
He said: “The perpetrator removed over 30 stones from around the central cist, then put the hide right in the middle, and drove huge metal spikes into the area around the top of the monument.
“If they had moved several headstones in a cemetery to make way for a hide, then put the stones back in any order, then you have a picture of what happened to the context of the burial site that was extensively disturbed at Carn Glas.
“It is important that we protect such sites as they give massive clues as to how we have developed over millennia, how customs and practises have changed, and find out how we have affected our environment over time.”
The structure has since been removed, allowing a thorough assessment of the site to begin in due course.
A spokeswoman for Historic Environment Scotland said: “We have been informed by Police Scotland that the temporary structure has been removed from Carn Glas and we will be inspecting the monument to assess if there has been any damage.”
Police confirmed yesterday that inquiries remained on-going.
A police spokesman said: “This is still very much a live inquiry; we are still looking into this.”
