Firefighter who threw YouTuber's phone wins case

John Linden was sacked after footage shared online appeared to show him throwing a man's phone over a hedge at the scene of a fire in 2023

A firefighter sacked for throwing a YouTuber's phone was unfairly dismissed due to "troubling" failures by officials, a tribunal has ruled.

Footage showed John Linden, of Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service (NFRS), appear to throw Jimmy Evans' phone over a hedge after an altercation at the scene of a fire in 2023.

Fire service officials said video of the incident risked damaging the service's reputation and eroding public trust.

A service spokeswoman said: "We acknowledge Mr Linden was unfairly dismissed for procedural reasons. However, the judgment concluded that dismissal was a reasonable response in the circumstances."

Footage shared online followed an argument at Hardings Pit, King's Lynn, after Mr Evans, who was on a mobility scooter, refused to move away from smoke coming from smouldering grass.

Mr Linden said the vlogger had previously been known to harass his staff and had acted in an aggressive manner at the scene.

Mr Linden, who served for 32 years and had been a station manager, took the service to an employment tribunal, claiming officials had failed to follow the correct procedures during his disciplinary hearing.

The tribunal panel, led by Judge Spencer, found "troubling" issues with how the service investigated.

It found a key issue was an email sent by Ceri Sumner, chief fire officer, instructing investigators not to interview key witnesses, including Mr Evans.

The complaint was resolved shortly after with the service making him a payment of £300 for the reported value of his phone.

'There are no winners'

In documents, the panel said: "We concluded that there are so many procedural failures in this case that the procedure followed by the respondent is outside the band of reasonable responses.

"The dismissal was unfair on procedural grounds."

Mr Linden claimed he was discriminated against and stated his post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) caused him to overreact due to feeling threatened by Mr Evans.

However, this claim failed.

According to the panel, a separate charge of failing to make reasonable adjustments for his disability was "well-founded".

This related to the service's failure to provide adequate training for Mr Linden on how to manage situations involving aggressive members of the public.

However, this complaint was time-barred and could not be considered.

Following the outcome, Mr Linden said: "There are no winners here. This has cost Norfolk taxpayers tens of thousands of pounds.

"I will always be sad and disappointed by the way I was treated.

"The fire service was my life. I put 110% in every day and attended some of the most harrowing incidents across the county and country.

"I achieved several commendations and was highly respected by colleagues."

The NFRS spokeswoman said: "Once we have fully considered the findings, we will decide on our next steps.

"Over the last couple of years we have done a huge amount to improve the culture in the organisations, and we are continuing to drive these improvements to ensure that we have teams with high professional standards who represent the best interests of our service and the communities we serve."