SOUTHAMPTON — Leon O'Leary, 41, received a sentence of three years and one month in prison for violent disorder and throwing a smoke grenade at police officers. Connor Bishop, 24, was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison for violent disorder after throwing a traffic cone at police officers.
Both men pleaded guilty to violent disorder charges, which are related to a disturbance in Southampton on June 2. Henry Nowak, 18, died from a fatal stabbing in Southampton. Prosecutor Siobhan Linsley said that it is estimated that approximately 1,000 people were in attendance at the demonstration.
O'Leary pleaded guilty to possessing an offensive weapon after police recovered a samurai sword from his bedroom during his arrest. Protesters moved from the Southampton central police station to the Portswood area during the event, where clashes resulted in injuries to 11 police officers.
Linsley described a scene where disorder broke out, with participants acting particularly aggressively towards the police. She said they were shouting abuse and throwing makeshift projectiles such as bricks and bins towards them. Linsley said video evidence showed Bishop carrying a yellow traffic cone which he throws towards the back of the PSU officers.
During the unrest, British Transport Police officer Ruby Stephenson stated she was chased by protesters who were calling them traitors and scum. Stephenson said she was abused, called names and threatened. She reported she was terrified and did not think she would make it out of there alive or without serious injuries. Stephenson also stated that she has been a police officer for 12 years and she has never experienced such violence or hatred towards the police.
O'Leary has nine previous convictions. Bishop has seven previous convictions and was previously subject to a community order for elbowing his mother. Twenty-one people have been charged in connection with the protest disorder. Police officers handcuffed Henry Nowak while he was dying from the stabbing. Vickrum Digwa was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 21 years for the murder of Henry Nowak, after making a false claim that Nowak had racially abused him prior to the stabbing. Stephen Yaxley-Lennon also attended the demonstration.