Foul-mouthed fishermen in dramatic row with boater on idyllic Norfolk Broads

A pair of foul-mouthed fishermen have been filmed in a dramatic row with a boater on the idyllic Norfolk Broads which is being probed by police.

The incident at Irstead Staithe, Norfolk was filmed by another boater and appeared to show the anglers try to stop a man from landing by kicking away his cruiser.

In the video, the fishermen are seen pushing the boat away from the bank as it approached - telling the man onboard to "f**k off".

One of the men is heard saying: "This is not Broads Authority you t*t - you can f**k off."

He continues: "This is parish, not Broads Authority," pointing to moorings further along the staithe.

Later, he says: "I'll put you in the f*****g water if you come any closer".

The row took place on March 5 along the bank of the River Ant and was reported to the police the following day after a video of the incident was uploaded to YouTube.

The boater in the video was William Emerson, 35, who has been living on the Norfolk Broads for the last 13 years.

Mr Emerson's 1969 Freeman Mark II boat was kicked by the fishermen as he tried to moor.

In footage Emerson filmed on his phone of the row, he and one of the fishermen can be heard arguing over who is allowed to allowed to use the mooring.

He said: "As I was pulling in, one of the fishermen quite clearly turned around and walked away from the bank so I couldn't speak to him.

"As I moored, the threats escalated and he said 'I'm going to put you in the river, I'm going to put you in concrete handcuffs' and so on.

"Being shouted at - it's quite common around here, especially if you're trying to moor up in a certain place."

Mr Emerson also claimed that one of the fishermen seen in the video had also verbally abused another boater three weeks earlier leading to his own "frustration".

Miles Weston, 52, was sailing the boat in which the video was taken from on the day of the incident.

He said: "The fisherman became hostile and belligerent, verbally abusing the man and kicking the boat.

"At one point, William wasn't on board and could have easily lost his boat from them pushing it away.

"There are multiple bylaws being violated here. You have the threatening behaviour, not letting it moor, disturbing the peace, causing alarm, harassment and distress.

"I find it remarkable that a few weeks later that these chaps still haven't been caught. It's the most aggressive incident I've ever seen as a residential boater of ten years."

Mr Weston uploaded the dramatic video to his YouTube channel, Sailing High Seas, which has since received more than 23k views.

Ownership of the land at Irstead Staithe is split in half - with one side being owned by the Broads Authority and the other maintained by Barton Turf and Irstead Parish Council.

There are four moorings along the 40m staithe and the rules are the same all the way along, with anglers having to give way to boaters seeking to moor.

The Broads Authority's guidance for angling from its 24-hour moorings states: "At moorings, anglers must always give way to boats wishing to moor.

Norfolk Police have confirmed enquiries are ongoing after receiving reports of threatening behaviour, with the two men making threats towards the boater using aggressive language.

A Broads Authority spokesperson said: "We are working with Norfolk Constabulary to investigate this case, however we cannot comment on an active investigation."