Three pro-Palestine vandals jailed for 20 months each
Activists who broke into a defence-linked site and staged a 16-hour occupation handed 20-month sentences, as judge rules damage was “deliberate” and disruptive
Three pro-Palestinian activists who carried out a 16-hour rooftop protest at a defence-linked factory have been jailed for 20 months each.
Julian Gao, 22, Saeed Najam Shah, 53, and Daniel Jones, 30, broke into the site of Teledyne UK Ltd in Shipley in the early hours of 2 April 2024, using an angle grinder to cut through a security fence. Once inside, they caused an estimated £570,000 worth of damage to the roof and interior.
The company has previously been linked to the manufacture of equipment used by the British Army and exported to other countries, including Israel.
The three men, along with a fourth defendant, Ruby Hamill, 21, were convicted in February of criminal damage and possession of articles with intent to cause criminal damage. Hamill, of Emu Road in London, was convicted in her absence and remains wanted by police.
Sentencing the men at Bradford Crown Court, Judge Ahmed Nadim said the protest was “deliberate, planned and sustained” and had caused significant damage and disruption.
During the demonstration, the group changed into red boiler suits and were filmed carrying sledgehammers, ladders and crowbars, alongside flags and banners. Drone footage later showed them smashing roof tiles and windows after climbing onto the building.
Emergency services were forced to implement a containment plan when the protesters refused to come down.
The court heard the damage directly affected around 100 employees and forced the site to close for a week.
As the sentences were handed down, supporters in the public gallery applauded before the three men were taken into custody.
Judge Nadim said it was not the court’s role to assess the political motivations behind the protest.
“The damage, amounting to a substantial sum, was deliberately inflicted with the intention of causing maximum disruption,” he said.
He added that the defendants were being sentenced for their actions, not for the beliefs that lay behind them.
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