Mob who stopped killers and rapists’ deportation let off
‘Stansted 15’ gloat as convictions quashed
protesters who stormed an airport to stop the deportation of criminals had their convictions quashed yesterday.
the ‘stansted 15’ cut through the essex airport’s perimeter fence in March 2017 and locked themselves around a Boeing 767 chartered by the Home office. Among the criminals on the Africa-bound jet was a murderer and a child rapist.
the activists were convicted in December 2018 under the Aviation and Maritime security Act, with three given suspended jail sentences and the others handed community orders.
But the convictions were overturned after the Court of Appeal ruled they should never have been found guilty because their actions were not grave enough.
the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Burnett, sitting with Mr Justice Jay and Mrs Justice Whipple, said in the judgment: ‘their conduct did not satisfy the various elements of the offence. there was, in truth, no case to answer.
‘We recognise that the various summary-only offences with which the appellants were originally charged, if proved, might well not reflect the gravity of their actions.
‘that, however, does not allow the use of an offence which aims at conduct of a different nature.
‘All the appellants’ convictions must be quashed.’
regular flights were delayed as police and security took more than an hour to remove the activists.
the protest meant 60 people were taken off the flight heading to Ghana, Nigeria and sierra Leone, including 25 criminals who had been imprisoned in the UK.
After the judgment was handed
‘A matter of great shame’
down yesterday one of the protesters, Ben smoke, 21, tweeted an image of himself wearing a t-shirt with the words ‘ex-terrorist’. He said: ‘We won our appeal. I’m so happy. I can’t stop crying. We ****ing did it.’
raj Chada, head of criminal defence at Hodge Jones & Allen solicitors, the law firm representing the stansted 15, said: ‘It should be a matter of great shame to the Crown prosecution service and the Attorney General that terrorrelated legislation was used against peaceful protesters.
‘Both have questions to answer as to why they authorised such an unprecedented charge.’
In a statement on behalf of the protesters, May McKeith, 35, said the ‘ nightmare’ of the ‘ bogus charge’, trial, and threat of a prison sentence had dominated the activists’ lives for four years, adding: ‘Despite the draconian response we know our actions were justified.’
Court documents stated that the 1990 Amsa law, which was created following the 1988 Lockerbie bombing, was intended to deal with violent offences ‘of the utmost seriousness,’ such as terrorism. Lord Burnett found there was no evidence in the case that the group created disruption that was ‘likely to endanger’ the safety of others.
He said: ‘It could not be established to the criminal standard that the actions of the appellants created disruption to the services of stansted airport which was likely to endanger its safe operation or the safety of persons there.’
the other 13 cleared were: Helen Brewer, 31; Lyndsay Burtonshaw, 30; Nathan Clack, 32; Laura Clayson, 30; Melanie evans, 37; Joseph McGahan, 37; Jyotsna ram, 35; Nicholas sigsworth, 31; Melanie strickland, 37; Alistair tamlit, 32; edward thacker, 31; emma Hughes, 40; and ruth potts, 46.