A man has been jailed for two years after pleading guilty to violent disorder after throwing a plastic bottle and swearing at police during an anti-migrant protest in Portsmouth earlier this month.
Del Somerville, 42, was sentenced at Portsmouth Crown Court this afternoon for his involvement in the demonstration on the Hampshire coast on September 6.
The protest, organised and led by Patriot Platform, saw attendees clash with police over the arrival of a vessel carrying migrants across the Channel.
The father-of-two, of Paulsgrove, was the first to be arrested for violent disorder during the ordeal, now also becoming the first to be sentenced.
Judge Daniel Sawyer told him that his sentence would act as a deterrent to others following subsequent protests in the area, as seen in Gosport this week.
Describing him as a “thug”, he told the defendant: “Police officers dedicate their lives to the protection of the public regardless of their own views, the very least they can expect is that those who engage in protests treat them with respect and the courts punish those who assault them.”
Edward Warren, prosecuting, said: “This case arises out of the violence that occurred on the night of 6th September following the arrival into the country of 114 illegal migrants who had crossed the Channel from France and were diverted to Eastney marina escorted by the Coastguard and the RNLI.”
Hundreds of protesters descended on the south coast, where large crowds blocked traffic in Fort Cumberland Road, Eastney, as police carrying riot shields formed a blockade.
Protesters gathered in Portsmouth after 140 migrants rescued in the Channel were brought ashore by two RNLI lifeboats
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PAThe vessel was said to be carrying 140 illegal migrants, and had attempted to dock before protestors blocked the single entry/exit to Portsmouth harbour.
The Government condemned the “thuggish behaviour” of protesters in both Portsmouth, and Dover the day prior.
A Government spokesman said: “We condemn the intimidating and thuggish behaviour we are seeing tonight.
“The right to peaceful protest is fundamental to our democracy, but it must never cross a line into disorder. We thank the emergency services who are working to safely manage this situation.”
Amid the ongoing outrage, hundreds of anti-migration protesters faced off against police in Gosport on Tuesday night, as fury broke out over police “escorting invading migrants”.
Six demonstrators were arrested after “becoming hostile towards officers”, the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary said.
The protesters assembled outside a marina in the town ahead of the impending arrival of a mega-dinghy packed with illegal migrants which had spent more than 33 hours at sea.
Around 60 migrants on the small boat were “determined to take all risks to reach the United Kingdom”, French authorities said in a statement – and they turned down assistance from the French coastguard as they sailed to Britain.
Hundreds gathered outside the Portsmouth Guildhall amid a series of protests at small boat landing sites around the south coast
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PAThe fresh arrest follows Danny Tommo, protest organiser and founder of Patriot Platform, being taken into custody by police today on suspicion of criminal damage with intent to endanger life.
The 37-year-old activist, whose real name is Daniel Thomas, live-streamed footage of an interaction with a migrant dinghy in the English Channel earlier this week.
After the incident, police launched an investigation, in which a migrant dinghy was allegedly cut open with a knife while a French coastguard official remained aboard the vessel.
A statement from Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary said: “A man has been arrested after a boat that had an emergency responder on board was damaged in the English Channel.”
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