These are the faces of the Love Activists locked up for occupying Liverpool’s former Bank of England building.
‘Anti-capitalists’ John Hall, 50, John Rice, 23, Chelsea Stafford, 19, and James Jones, 20, were sentenced to 10 weeks behind bars for illegally occupying Liverpool’s old Bank of England building in Castle Street for more than three weeks between April and May.
James Allanson, 20, was also jailed for 13 weeks over an incident in Everton Park during the same hearing at Liverpool Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.
The court heard the total policing cost of the occupation in Castle Street – part of a protest over lack of support for the homeless and government austerity – was more than £100,000.
Meanwhile damage caused to the Grade-I listed structure was estimated to have cost its owners up to £46,000.
District Judge Andrew Shaw said the historic building was “illegally occupied”.
He said: “This was a very visible and high profile protest. Those inside would have been aware of the impact of their actions.
“The cost to the police was in excess of £91,500. That money would have been used by the city to maintain law and order and promote the wellbeing of the people of the city.
“Some of those inside the building damaged it both by spraying graffiti and by actual acts of destruction, which I am told will cost thousands of pounds to repair.”
He said the “apparent object” of the occupation was to protest about the plight of the homeless.
But he said: “None of the defendants have done any work in the community to benefit the homeless.
“There is a genuine lack of sincerity in their actions, which have the appearance of a self indulgent vanity project.”
Source: http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/