BROADBAND equipment near Glastonbury was vandalised over the weekend - leaving households without an internet connection.

The incident occurred at Paddington Farm, on the outskirts of the town, when vandals targeted what they believed to be 5G network technology.

In fact, the equipment they damaged was a 5GHz broadband transmitter.

The damage left the Norwood Park area with little or no internet connection.

A spokesperson for Voneus Broadband, which provides the connection, said if the vandals were intending to protest over a conspiracy theory which claims 5G is harmful, were mistaken in their target.

They said the company had informed police of the incident.

Adam Goodman, project manager at Voneus Broadband said: “This is a clear case of lack of knowledge and understanding.

“The vandals disrupted their community thinking they were sticking it to 5G (5th generation mobile technology), when in fact, they damaged a 5GHz (five gigahertz) broadband transmitter instead.

“The act was not only criminal but also completely pointless and did nothing for their protest.”

The culprits had allegedly boasted about their actions by leaving a sign opposite the Riflemans Pub, which read, ‘Check out the 5G at Paddington Farm’.

The equipment has since been repaired and connections restored by Voneus.

The firm has also installed CCTV at the site to monitor the equipment.

Anyone with information about the vandalism should contact police on 101.