Man who threw bricks at police during riot jailed

A mechanical engineer who threw bricks at police when unrest broke out outside a hotel for asylum seekers has been jailed.

Dane Freeman, 25, of Timson Street, Failsworth, admitted violent disorder during the incident in Newton Heath, Manchester, on 31 July.

Freeman was captured on video, among a mob, throwing and smashing bricks against a wall, then launching broken shards at police lines surrounding the hotel.

Despite wearing a face mask, Freeman was later identified by a distinctive "sleeve" tattoo on his arm, Manchester Crown Court heard.

He was sentenced to 26 months in jail.

The clash was part of a nationwide outbreak of unrest sparked by misinformation spread online following a knife attack in Southport on 29 July, which left three children dead.

Dan Gaskell, defending Freeman, said his only previous conviction was for a motoring matter. He added that Freeman had subsequently lost his job, but remained responsible for providing "significant" healthcare to his mother.

On the day of the incident, Mr Gaskell continued, Freeman had finished work and gone to the gym. He was not motivated by racial hatred or social media, his lawyer stated, and only went to the hotel after receiving a text from a friend who was already there.

Sentencing him, Judge Patrick Field KC, said: "This is, sadly, yet another example of a young man that has very little acquaintance with the criminal courts becoming involved in unacceptable public violence without any explanation at all.

"This sort of behaviour will not, and cannot, be tolerated.

"Severe sentences are likely not just to punish you, but also to deter others who might think they want to launch bricks at police officers because they are angry about something."