A YouTuber who snuck onto the roof of Anfield Stadium to watch a Liverpool FC game compared it to having his "own personal VIP area".
Kain Hogg and Stuart Parr donned hi-vis jackets in order to gain entry to the ground via the construction site at the Anfield Road End before clambering on top of the Sir Kenny Dalglish Stand and taking in the Reds' Champions League quarter final against Real Madrid. A judge this week told them that their actions were "ludicrously dangerous".
Hogg is a well-known urban explorer and YouTuber, with video footage of their exploits later being posted online. His stunts have hit the headlines several times previously over the years, with this not having even been the first time he has snuck into Anfield.
READ MORE: Man swears and storms out of dock as he is found guilty of murder
He first posted a video of him inside the famous ground in October last year, entering in the early hours with a friend and similarly making his way onto the roof. Speaking to the ECHO at the time, Hogg described the climb as "treacherous" but said "the view was amazing".
After his latest break-in in February, he claimed that the stunt was his "only option" as the game had sold out weeks previously. But it resulted in him being surrounded by 30 police officers upon his removal from the roof, as well 20 hours in custody.
Hogg said: "We've watched the first half without any issue, maybe due to the green and orange high-vis jackets me and Stuart are wearing. So we're blending in well.
"At half-time a security guard comes to us on the roof and asks us why we were here, we're honest and friendly and admitted to not being there for a legitimate reason. We waited on the roof watching the game with him talking about football.
"The view was immense. Simply breathtaking.
"The atmosphere was surreal, and it was extra special as no other people were around. It was like having our own personal VIP area.
"Being high up on the roof access during a game is certainly an experience. However, we're very sorry to Liverpool FC and to the police that had to deal with the situation."
Back in January 2021, police condemned Hogg's actions when he "surfed" a moving train after jumping onto it as it left Sandhills Station. The same month, he sparked an investigation after boarding a multi-million pound Ministry of Defence ship while it was docked at the Port of Liverpool.
Later that year, Hogg managed to break into Merseyside Police's new headquarters on St Anne Street while the building was still under construction. Other high profile stunts have included scaling the Big One at Blackpool Pleasure Beach and the Silver Jubilee Bridge between Runcorn and Widnes without a harness.
Liverpool Magistrates' Court heard on Wednesday that police were contacted by the club after Hogg and Parr, aged 23 and 21 respectively, were seen on the roof in hi-vis clothing midway through the 2-5 defeat on February 21 this year. Ed Rattigan, prosecuting, described how stewards and an officer had to clamber up a ladder to reach them with a drone also being deployed to investigate the incident.
The friends, both of Viola Street in Bootle, then confirmed that they did not have tickets for the match and were arrested. They claimed that they had climbed over a fence at the adjacent building site in order to gain illegal entry.
Mr Rattigan said their behaviour could have led to supporters being evacuated during the "extremely high profile event". He also highlighted the "risk to the defendants themselves", as well as the "significant risk to supporters if they had fallen into the crowded stands below".
Marcella Salter, defending both housemates, told the court that her clients have "personal issues" and added: "They were foolish. It was a high profile game - thankfully, nobody was in fact hurt.
"They complied and cooperated with police throughout. There is some work that needs to be done.
"Both defendants are currently unemployed but are actively seeking employment, and hopefully employment will come. Both have said they wish to apologise for their behaviour and want to put matters behind them so that they can move forward.
"Their hobby, which is how they got there, is no longer a hobby either of them engage in. They have stopped that because they have realised the risk to themselves and the public at large."
Hogg and Parr admitted obtaining services dishonestly, causing a public nuisance and being found in enclosed premises during an earlier hearing. They were both handed 12-month community orders with 280 hours of unpaid work and rehabilitation activity requirements of up to 15 days, as well as being told to pay £120 in court costs and victim surcharges of £114.
District Judge Wendy Lloyd described them as "two astoundingly stupid young men" whose actions "could have led to abject mayhem". Sentencing, she added: "You are perhaps comparatively young and have a lot to learn.
"Your behaviour was dangerous and outrageous. You didn't know if you were going to fall down and bring debris down on others.
"It was ludicrously dangerous activity. You could have killed yourselves and you could have hurt or killed others, and certainly a police officer was put at risk.
"You both have some difficulties. Fortunately, you were brought down without there being any disruption within the crowd or any damage being caused whatsoever.
"The story could have been a different one, but it seems fair to bear in mind what did happen and not what could have happened. The next possibility would surely be imprisonment."
READ NEXT: Bar worker caught stealing from safe after owners checked CCTV
Thug watched football with neighbour then left him with a bleed on the brain
Bar attack left man in coma and unable to speak or recognise his own parents
Rapist told child to do what he wanted or 'Father Christmas wouldn't appear'
Son said he would 'stab everyone and burn house down' after mum told him to leave
