Extinction Rebellion: Paralympian James Brown guilty over plane stunt

A bottle of superglue in Brown's luggage went undetected

A former Paralympian who glued himself to the roof of a plane has been found guilty of causing a public nuisance.

James Brown, who is visually impaired, climbed on to the British Airways plane at London City Airport in October 2019, during Extinction Rebellion protests.

The 56-year-old from Exeter glued his right hand to the Amsterdam-bound plane, wedging his phone in the door to stop it from closing.

Judge Gregory Perrins will sentence the double gold medallist on 17 September.

Northern Ireland-born Brown, who represented Great Britain in cycling and athletics before competing for Ireland in cross-country skiing, spent an hour on the aircraft before he was removed, Southwark Crown Court heard.

Prosecutors said he caused disruption to more than 300 British Airways passengers, costing the airline £40,000.

Brown, who represented himself, denied one count of causing a public nuisance, claiming he had "to do something spectacular" to draw attention to the climate crisis.

But he was found guilty on Wednesday after a jury deliberated for less than an hour.

Brown wept as he gave evidence at Southwark Crown Court

Speaking after the verdict, Brown said he was "gutted" but that it was "the price you pay for taking a risk".

He said: "I guess it could've gone the other way. I knew that a conviction was a possibility, of course, I knew that.

"What I did was only a very small part. There are a lot of people giving up a lot to make a difference and I'm only one of them."

The jury heard that Brown had booked his flight on the morning of the stunt, and had been offered assistance with boarding due to his disability.

He had a bottle of superglue in his luggage that had not been detected by security, prosecutor Richard Witcombe said.

Extinction Rebellion protesters targeted London City Airport in October 2019

Brown declined an offer by a member of cabin staff to help him to his seat, telling her that he was going to climb on to the roof of the plane.

Giving evidence, Brown wept as he told jurors: "I was prepared to challenge myself, to be scared, to face the fear, because the fear of climate ecological breakdown is so much greater."

In an emotional speech, married father-of-four Brown, who runs a charity, said: "My protest, the purpose I hope is clear, my motivation was to maximise media attention to the climate crisis, which back at that time was hardly receiving any."