Sarah Everard: Three attendees fined over unofficial vigil

An unofficial vigil took place at Clapham Common in March 2021

Three people have been fined for breaking Covid laws by attending a vigil for Sarah Everard.

Hundreds of people gathered on Clapham Common, south London, in March 2021 for an unofficial event after a planned one was cancelled.

The vigil was held after Ms Everard was kidnapped, raped and murdered by Met officer Wayne Couzens, who is serving a whole-life jail term.

The Met has been criticised for how it handled the event and its aftermath.

The planned protest, which was being organised by Reclaim These Streets (RTS), was cancelled when organisers were threatened with £10,000 fines by the police.

• What went wrong at the Sarah Everard vigil?

The force brought prosecutions against six people.

Dania Al-Obeid, 27, from Stratford, east London; Ben Wheeler, 21, from Kennington, south London, and Kevin Godin-Prior, 68, from Manchester, were all convicted in their absence in a behind-closed-doors hearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court.

Each was fined £220 and ordered to pay an extra £134 in costs.

They were all accused of participating in a gathering of more than two people in a public outdoor place when London was under Tier 4 restrictions.

Sarah Everard had been walking to her home in nearby Brixton when she was kidnapped

In a police witness statement submitted to the court, officers said Ms Al-Obeid was arrested after repeatedly ignoring police directions to leave.

PC Darryl Mayne said: "I had witnessed Al-Obeid shout aggressive chants regarding officers being 'murderers'.

"However, I was unsure whether she was going to physically assault officers once she had realised officers were detaining her."

He added he was "fully aware of the seriousness and sensitively of the situation and the reasoning for the gathering" but had to "uphold my duty as a serving constable to maintain public health".

Marketing manager Ms Al-Obeid is taking legal advice over the fine.

The remaining three protesters are to have their case heard within the next month.

Flowers left at the bandstand on Clapham Common where the vigil was held

A report by HM Insp of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services concluded police "acted appropriately" when dealing with the event, but also found it was a "public relations disaster" and described some statements made by members of the force as "tone deaf".

The Met were refused permission to appeal for a second time against a High Court ruling which concluded the force breached the rights of the organisers of the cancelled vigil.