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ASBO

Asbo woman jailed over racist graffiti spree.

By
July 31, 2013
ASBO, criminal damage, EDL, English Defence League, Racial Conviction, racially-aggravated criminal damage, Suspended sentence

Georgina Gontar, 20, of Old Woking, pleaded guilty to a breach of an Asbo, four offences of racially aggravated criminal damage and two of causing criminal damage when she appeared at Guildford Magistrates’ Court last Wednesday (April 17).

The graffiti, including the the name “Bin Laden” and the letters “EDL”, was daubed inside a shop at Lion Retail Park, on a wall in view of the Shah Jahan Mosque in Oriental Road and outside properties in Walton Road on November 12 last year.

For the Asbo breach and racially aggravated criminal damage, Gontar received a custodial sentence of 10 weeks, suspended for 12 months.

For the criminal damage she received a custodial sentence of seven weeks, suspended for 12 months, to run concurrently with the first term.

During the 12-month period, Gontar has a supervisory order in place and she is required to participate in a diversity awareness and prejudice programme.

The magistrates also ordered Gontar to pay compensation of £650 to the James Walker Group, £40 to Hobbycraft and £20 to Unit 18 Boundary Way at the hearing.

She was jointly charged with 19-year-old Laura Woodward of Addlestone.

Get Surrey

Woking People

Eastcote teen Joel Titus banned from protests by far right EDL

By
July 22, 2013
ASBO, EDL, English Defence League, Public order offence

 

Joel Titus

AN Eastcote teenager has been banned from attending protests by far-right group the English Defence League.

Joel Titus, 19, of North View, who has been violent at EDL protests, was slapped with an antisocial behaviour order (ASBO) at Uxbridge Magistrates Court on Friday.

The court heard about the teenager’s involvement in a string of incidents between 2009 and 2010, which police say were overwhelmingly related to EDL protests.

Titus was barred from entering or loitering outside mosques or Islamic prayer rooms, attending any EDL demonstration, or visiting an area of Whitechapel for three years.

He is not allowed to be part of a group of ten or more people, whose actions could cause alarm or distress, display a sign or placard, or use defamatory or insulting language which could cause alarm or distress.

Detective Constable Andy Haworth, from the national domestic extremism unit, said: “We hope this anti-social behaviour order will show people we will not tolerate violence being used at legitimate lawful protests.”

Edmund Hall, London ASBO specialist at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said: “Mr Titus’ activities were not simple political protest when he became involved in public disorder and violence.

“Where that sort of activity is present, police and the CPS will seek to control the freedom of that individual through prosecution and antisocial behaviour orders.”

The hearing was brought after Titus was convicted for a public order offence and resisted arrest at a pub in Hillingdon, in December 2010.

Harrow Times

Pair locked up over EDL demo near Eureka

By
July 19, 2013
ASBO, EDL, English Defence League, Jailed

A 21-year-old Rochdale man and a 16-year-old youth from Stockport have been locked up by a judge for their part in disturbances involving English Defence League supporters at the Eureka Museum in Halifax.

Michael Kelly, of Sykes Court, Rochdale, and the teenager, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, had travelled to West Yorkshire in July last year for an EDL demonstration in the car park of the popular family attraction.

Bradford Crown Court heard that although it was a Saturday the museum itself was closed to the public and only some staff were on duty that afternoon.

Prosecutor David McGonigal told the court how the Unite Against Facism group were due to hold a counter demonstration about a mile away, but police became concerned about possible clashes when about 50 EDL supporters headed towards the King Cross Road area.

A bus was provided to take the EDL followers to the Eureka car park and Mr McGonigal said it was at about 1.30pm when between 200 and 300 EDL demonstrators broke through the fence at the museum and confronted a small number of police officers.

Mr McGonigal said rocks and bottles were thrown towards officers who were in their normal uniforms and the crowd was shouting and gesticulating aggressively.

Staff inside the museum were frightened by the incident and some of the crowd made their way around to the side of the museum where industrial-size bins were overturned and damage caused to fencing.

Mr McGonigal said the demonstrators were eventually contained by officers in riot gear, police dogs and mounted police.

Kelly, who had earlier been filmed in Sowerby Bridge wearing a skull mask, was one of those who went through the broken fence into the museum grounds and Mr McGonigal alleged that at one stage he could be seen charging towards the police officers.

Kelly, who has a previous conviction for threatening behaviour at a football match, admitted violent disorder on the basis that he had no thrown anything at the police himself.

Kelly, who was arrested in December, said he was not a member of the EDL but had wanted to take part in a peaceful manner.

He said he was part of the crowd and blamed the police for “hemming” them in at the car park.

He said he wasn’t charging at the police, but simply trying to get out of the museum grounds.

Kelly was jailed for nine months by Judge Peter Benson who also imposed a two-year anti-social behaviour order on the defendant.

The 16-year-old, who also admitted violent disorder, was shown on CCTV footage kicking at the fence before it is broken down.

At the time the youngster was wearing a scarf over his face.

The teenager was sentenced to a six-month detention and training order and he was also made the subject of a two-year ASBO

Halifax Courier