3 months ago
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A man who claimed he was too drunk to remember throwing an object at riot police outside a hotel housing asylum seekers has been jailed for two-and-a-half years.
Charlie Eames, 30, from Sheffield, admitted a charge of violent disorder related to the targeting of the Holiday Inn Express, in Manvers, Rotherham, on 4 August.
Police body-worn camera footage played at Sheffield Crown Court showed Eames throwing an unknown object at police before encouraging another man to throw a large piece of wood.
The hotel had been housing more than 200 asylum seekers at the time, with the violence involving about 400 people.
Rebecca Tanner, defending Eames, of High Street, said her client had seen videos of crowds outside the hotel on social media before it turned violent and decided to go along, believing it to be "peaceful".
She told the court Eames had drunk a substantial amount before the incident and could not remember throwing the object.
"He readily accepts he was highly intoxicated," she told the hearing.
"When the mood shifted, he became a willing participant."
In the body-worn footage, Eames is seen at the front of the crowd wearing a gilet with a bottle of ginger wine pushed down his waistband.
Some of the mob broke into the hotel and tried to set it on fire, with 64 police officers, three police horses and a police dog left injured.
More than 80 people have been charged following the violence, with more than 30 jailed.
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