A 15-year-old boy has been sentenced to a 12-month referral order after admitting taking part in a violent disturbance outside a hotel in Merseyside housing asylum seekers.
The boy, who cannot be named, hit the windscreen of a police van with a stick after “following the crowd” during the incident outside the Suites hotel in Knowsley in February, Liverpool youth court heard on Tuesday.
He was sentenced to a 12-month referral order, a non-custodial punishment for first-time youth offenders, after pleading guilty to violent disorder. He will be referred to a panel of two trained community volunteers and a member of his local youth offending team.
The boy is the second person to be sentenced so far for their part in the incident, which Merseyside police said began as a peaceful protest and counter-protest outside the hotel on 10 February.
Jared Skeete, 19, was jailed for three years in April after admitting snorting ketamine as he shouted abuse at riot police, before throwing a firework at them.
Seventeen men and boys have so far been charged in connection with the incident, including seven boys aged from 13 to 17.
The 15-year-old boy is the only juvenile to plead guilty in the incident to date. A trial has been set for 2 January 2024 for those who deny violent disorder. Five adult men have also pleaded guilty and will be sentenced after the trial.
Addressing a panel of magistrates on Tuesday, the boy said he had seen on social media that a protest was planned for outside the hotel and “followed the crowd”. He said: “I didn’t have any intentions.”
Footage taken from a drone showed the boy attacking the vehicle and then getting inside, the court heard. Interviewed by police, he said the window was already smashed when he hit it, and that he had not stolen anything from inside the vehicle.
“He said he was sorry to the officers and said that he had been showing off,” said the prosecutor, Emily Comer.
At an earlier hearing, the boy’s lawyer said his father was furious with his son, and told him off so forcefully in the police station that he was asked to leave.
The boy’s father told magistrates on Tuesday that he was shocked to hear what his son had done. He said: “He’s not like this at all. He’s a decent kid. He’s had punishment from me, he’s had punishment from his school. He has a good future ahead of him.”
His mother said it was out of character and that her son was remorseful.
The boy had been prevented from going on a school trip to the US as a result of his involvement, his father told the court.
Comer said £80,000 worth of damage was caused to police vehicles during the incident and that an officer was injured as people threw concrete slabs and other missiles.
