A former community award winner who hurled bricks at a police van during a riot in Southport has been jailed.
Joshua Cropper, 31, of Pitt Street, Southport, who was previously given a Pride of Sefton Award, was caught on video launching rocks, bricks and a concrete slab at the van while officers were inside, Merseyside Police said.
He was sentenced to two-and-a-half years for violent disorder in the town on 30 July.
Meanwhile, a 16-year-old boy from Knowsley, who cannot be named, has been convicted of assaulting a police officer during violent disorder in Liverpool on 3 August.
‘Truly shocking’
Cropper was given a courage award in the 2023 Pride of Sefton Awards for rescuing a number of dogs from a burning house.
Awards organisers Stand Up For Southport reported at the time that he was “overwhelmed” to get the award.
Speaking to the Stand Up For Southport, external community website at the time, the dad-of-three said: “I believe in karma. It’s good to do things to help other people.”
Det Ch Insp Tony Roberts said: “Cropper played a central role in the awful scenes he and others brought to the town that day.”
He said Cropper had repeatedly smashed the side window of a police van with a rock while officers were inside and picked up a concrete slab which he then used to strike the bonnet a number of times.
“While Cropper was topless throughout, he made some attempt to cover his face with a top tied around his neck and he wore a cap,” he added, .
Sitting on Tuesday, Liverpool Crown Court also heard that the 16-year-old assaulted a police officer by kicking him in the back after he had already been pushed off his motorbike on The Strand.
Mobile phone footage of the incident was shared widely on social media.
The teenager was convicted of violent disorder, criminal damage, assault by beating of an emergency worker and two counts of burglary other than in a dwelling.
He was also identified on footage as being at the forefront of a large mob who threw bricks at officers as well as damaging and burgling stores in Clayton Square.
A pre-sentence report was ordered and the boy, who also tried to conceal his identity with a face mask, will next appear at Liverpool Crown Court on 1 October.
DCI Roberts said the footage of the police officer being assaulted on The Strand was “truly shocking”.
“A lot of people would have viewed it and been appalled after it was widely shared on social media in the immediate aftermath of the disorder in Liverpool,” he said.
“Thankfully the officer didn’t sustain serious injuries during this particular incident, but the aggression and violence on display serves as a snapshot of what all of our officers had to deal with during the incidents in Liverpool and Southport.”
The force continued to identify suspects with more charges expected, he added.
The teenager, who cannot be named, was one of six people to appear before magistrates’ today charged in connection with the riots in Liverpool and Southport
A teenager was part of a “hostile crowd” that assaulted a lone police motorbike rider and stole £30,000 of vapes from Clayton Square.
The 16-year-old boy from Knowsley appeared at Liverpool Youth Court this afternoon, Tuesday, August 13 where he pleaded guilty to violent disorder, criminal damage and three counts of burglary.
The charges come in relation to the riots in Liverpool city centre on August 3. The city centre was subjected to large scale disorder when hundreds of people gathered on the Strand and by the Pier Head. The riot, which was originally billed as a peaceful protest under the name “Save our Kids”, turned violent with police officers attacked, vehicles destroyed and shops looted.
The youth, who cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted his role in the disorder. Prosecutor Matthew Dixon told the court, which excludes members of the public due to the defendant’s age: “The matters refer to the events of August 3 when the defendant engaged in the serious violent disorder in Liverpool city centre.
“He joined the hostile crowd. He was part of the crowd that assaulted a lone police motorcycle rider.” The court heard the teenager also attended the Ifix Phone Repair Centre, where he “lifted the shutters to enable others to enter”. The court also heard the teenager helped tip over a marked police vehicle worth £15,000.
Mr Dixon then said the teenager assisted in forcing open S&S News which was also looted, before he gained entry to Clayton Square “by kicking open the doors” where he stole vapes. The court hears £30,000 worth of vapes were stolen during the raid.
Prosecutor Mr Dixon added the matters “are taken very seriously” and said the courts will have a “very stark choice” between a referral order and detention in youth accommodation when it comes to sentencing. Clare Roche, defending, said the boy had a supportive family and stable home and is due to pick up his GCSE results next week.
District Judge Paul Healey said the teenager, who has no previous convictions, was bailed on the conditions he sleeps at his home address and that he doesn’t enter the L1, L2 or L3 postcodes. The judge confirmed the teenager would appear back before the youth court for sentence on September 17.
Following the teenager’s appearance, two men appeared before District Judge Healey charged with violent disorder in Southport. The riots in the north Sefton seaside town followed a peaceful vigil in memory of three young girls killed in a mass stabbing the previous day.
However, rioters gathered half a mile from the dance studio where the stabbings happened, fuelled by misinformation regarding the ethnicity, race and religion of the alleged attacker. Jake Lowther, 20 and of Abrams Fold in Banks, admitted throwing “concrete missiles” at police, hitting the shield of one officer, at the junction of Sussex Road and St Luke’s Road close to a mosque.
Lowther, who has no previous convictions, was supported in court by his mum and dad. The pair waved and mouthed “love you” at their son as he was led down to the cells after he was remanded in custody.
Luke Summerfield, 33 and of Mansfield Street in Ashton-under-Lyne, Manchester, also appeared charged with the same offence. The court heard the Manchester man had travelled to Southport where he threw objects towards the police line.
A Crown Prosecution Service prosecutor said: “He chose to enter the area to involve himself. He has chosen to engage in those proceedings. He is not local and someone who has got caught up in the emotions of the very tragic incident in Southport.”
The court heard the defendant, who was on bail from the crown court at the time of the incidents in Southport, had attempted to evade the police when they arrested him over the weekend. He appeared in the dock with blood stains on his shirt and a cut and bruising around his eye. He too was remanded into custody.
Earlier in the morning three other men appeared before the same judge in Liverpool Magistrates’ Court. David Engleby, 29 and of Scarisbrick New Road in Southport, appeared in court sporting a shaved head and tattoos, including a rose on his face. The court heard he was involved in the riots in Southport on July 30.
Engleby was described as an “active participant who played a leading role by throwing objects at the police” and pleaded guilty to the charge of violent disorder. Paul Dryhurst, 33 and of Gale Road in Litherland, was part of the same crowd and was identified by footage provided to the police by a member of the public.
Footage showed he was part of a large crowd chanting “Allah, Allah, who the f*** is Allah”. He then threw an object at the police and filmed the disorder on his phone. His defence said he accepted his wrongdoing and he pleaded guilty to violent disorder.
Connor Prescott, 25 and of no fixed abode, was also described to have played an active role in the rioting in Southport. He was seen “throwing bricks, masonry and wheelie bins towards the police”. Prescott, who admitted violent disorder, was remanded and will appear before Liverpool Crown Court with the other adult defendants on August 19 for sentencing.
A total of 35 people have now been charged in connection with the disorder across Merseyside. Several have already been imprisoned at Liverpool Crown Court. Police have repeatedly condemned the “despicable” violence which also happened on County Road in Walton on the same day as the city centre disorder.
Following the riots in Merseyside, disorder spread to towns and cities around the country. Police had made 927 arrests and 466 people had been charged across the country by Sunday afternoon, according to the National Police Chiefs’ Council.
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