A thug draped in a St George’s flag who kicked out at riot police and smashed trollies into officers is among the latest rioters convicted over the violence on Britain’s streets.
John Kirtley, 26, of Sunderland, was caught on camera as violence erupted when far-right demonstrations turned to chaos.
Today the thug admitted violent disorder in connection with his role in the protests, with dramatic footage showing Kirtley forcefully hurling trolleys at officers.
The rioter was caught on camera throwing bricks and a beer keg towards police officers who were protecting a mosque, South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court heard.
He also shouted ‘England till I die’ as he waved a flare.
It comes as a 13-year-old girl became the youngest known female rioter to be convicted today following anti-immigration protests as a result of the Southport stabbings.
The girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, admitted violent disorder in Aldershot, outside a hotel two days after the attack in Merseyside.
Accompanied by her mother and step-father, the court heard she would be looking at two years in jail, if she were an adult.
Today, in the youth court at Basingstoke Magistrates’ Court, Hants, the nervous-looking girl from Aldershot fidgeted in her chair as she was spoken to.
She spoke quietly and only did so to confirm her name, address and plead guilty to violent disorder.
The court heard the offence took place during a protest at Potters International Hotel, in Aldershot, on July 31.
The teenager admitted ‘using or threatening unlawful violence’ when present together with others which ‘would cause a person of reasonable firmness present at the scene to fear for his or her personal safety’.
Prosecutor Kerry Richardson told the court that if the girl had been an adult, she would be looking at two years in custody due to the ‘serious nature’ of events.
District Judge Tim Pattinson warned her she would be committing an offence if she did not attend the next court hearing and ordered her to ‘cooperate’ with probation. She will be sentenced on September 30.
A man who looted cosmetics chain Lush during riots in Hull has pleaded guilty to violent disorder, burglary and racially aggravated criminal damage.
John Honey, 25, admitted three charges of burglary at Lush, the O2 store and Shoezone in the city on August 3.
He also pleaded guilty to the racially aggravated criminal damage of a BMW and damaging nine other cars.
Judge John Thackray KC, the Recorder of Hull, said he hoped to be able to sentence Honey later on Tuesday.
Jack Fowler, 24, of Beaumont Terrace, Newcastle, also admitted the charge at the same court as Kirtley. Both will be sentenced at Newcastle Crown Court later this month.
Police say the pair were identified when images and footage of the disorder were shared with police, which included shocking scenes of Kirtley kicking out at frontline officers.
After officers issued a public appeal to locate Kirtley he handed himself in at Southwick Police Station on Sunday.
Meanwhile James Aspin, 34, of Briardale Road, Blyth, appeared at South East Northumberland Magistrates’ Court in Bedlington yesterday, charged with one count of distributing a recording to stir religious hatred.
Aspin pleaded guilty to the offence and was remanded in custody, he will appear at Newcastle Crown Court on Monday, August 19 for sentencing.
Police were made aware of content posted by Aspin last Friday gaining traction on TikTok, making hateful and threatening comments. He was arrested in the early hours of the Saturday morning, after being recognised by officers.
Det Chief Insp Graeme Barr, of Northumbria Police’s Major Investigations Team, said: ‘We are continuing to see great results following the persistent efforts of our officers.
‘Our net is tightening all the time as we trawl through hundreds of hours of footage and intelligence to find those who have played any part in the region’s recent disorder.
‘The behaviour demonstrated by these men is certainly not welcome in our communities – and we will continue to do everything in our power to ensure they are held accountable.
‘Over the past week, we have seen a great show of community togetherness and the support for the Force has been truly heartwarming.
‘We will continue to engage with communities to offer reassurance and gather intelligence to support our enquiries – and we welcome anyone who thinks they have anything useful to share to come forward.’