Robert Snooks

It was revealed in the London Chronicle of 11 March 1802, that the highwayman had also discarded his saddle with a broken girth strap on the moor, a mistake that subsequently led to his identification.

The day after the theft, Postmaster and High Constable John Page (of the Kings Arms in nearby Berkhamsted) initiated investigations into the crime.

This included one of the stolen bank notes being traced back to being in Snook's possession, when he accidentally gave it to a serving girl in Southwark whilst trying to purchase some cloth.

Whilst the typical punishment for highway robbery was transportation, due to Snook's crime being "of a nature so destructive to society and the commercial interests to the country", he was sentenced to be hanged.

It is believed that thousands of people flocked to see the hanging,[5] and it was to some of this number that Snook's is reputed to have exclaimed "It's no good hurrying - they can't start the fun until I get there!"

[6] Snook's body was dug up the day after his hanging, was interred in a coffin provided by the residents of Hemel Hempstead and unceremoniously re-interred on the moor.