Bristol riots: Man jailed for mobile police station fire

Alexander Papadopoulos admitted charges of arson and theft

A 28-year-old man has been jailed for six months at Bristol Crown Court for helping set fire to a mobile police station after a protest turned violent.

Alexander Papadopoulos, of Whitehall in Bristol, admitted charges of arson and theft after a Kill the Bill protest turned into a riot on 21 March 2021.

Papadopoulos helped start the blaze at a mobile police station and pushed a chair into it to accelerate the flames.

He also stole a police helmet and was seen on camera wearing it.

Papadopoulos was sentenced to six months in prison for arson and an additional seven days for the helmet theft, to run concurrently.

On sentencing Judge Patrick said Papadopoulos's actions had added to the fire which wrecked the mobile police station and that he had taken the police helmet as "a trophy".

A total of 27 people have now been jailed for offences committed during the riot.

Det Supt James Riccio said: "The fire this defendant was involved in stoking and accelerating caused catastrophic damage to a community mobile police station and was one of the more significant criminal acts committed on that shameful night of violence.

"The weight of evidence, particularly visual evidence, gathered during this investigation has directly led to this admission of guilt and subsequent prison sentence, which we welcome."