Theft and prove of owner ship needed for complaint or not

[freeflowwales]

I am in Scotland's highlands and need a little advice.
I was told picking up wood (fallen trees and branches) and rotten telegraph poles (not new) could be theft, but is it not true for a complaint of theft to be brought against you, the complainant had to be the owner of the wood and has to prove he is the owner. is this not correct?
But in case of fallen branches, how can they prove ownership and telegraph poles are owned by a utility company, so they do not let's say belong to a landowner therefore he can't prove they are his if he is the one bringing the claim?

[atticus]

Correct: it is not true that the complainant has to be the owner. The person taking the wood is doing so with the intention of permanently depriving the true owner of it.

[freeflowwales]

Correct: it is not true that the complainant has to be the owner. The person taking the wood is doing so with the intention of permanently depriving the true owner of it.

But in court, it would have to be proven that the person who picked up the branches on the roadside is not the owner, so if the person under arrest claims it is his how can they prove it is not?

[PallasAthena]

Have you been arrested by the police freeflowwales ?

And charged with theft of wood/timber?

[freeflowwales]

Have you been arrested by the police freeflowwales ?

And charged with theft of wood/timber?

No, but I pick up frequently falling branched from the roadside but was told this is unlawful but just want to know how they would prove it, after all, it is laying on the road, falling trees, branches from the wind, and out of principle I always say its mine.

[PallasAthena]

I'd have thought that if the timber is on someone else's land the presumption is that it belongs to the landowner, they would merely have to prove it was their land. That wouldn't be difficult. How that works if the branches have fallen onto the public highway I don't know.