Boy, 12, becomes youngest charged in connection with riots

The youngest person to be charged in connection with the violent disorder seen across the country appeared before the courts this morning. The boy, 12 and from north Sefton, appeared at Merseyside Youth Court this morning, Monday, August 8 along with a 15-year-old boy from south Liverpool.

The 12-year-old pleaded guilty to violent disorder in Southport while the 15-year-old denied burglary in Liverpool city centre. Both of the boys cannot be named because of their age. The 12-year-old, wearing a grey-prison issue tracksuit and sporting cropped hair, appeared before District Judge Paul Healey supported by his parents.

He sat at the back of the court instead of in the dock. Prosecutor Jessica Pridding told the court: "Merseyside Police’s Operation Pepperberry is the force’s response to the disorder from July 30 onwards. On July 30 the defendant is seen on footage amongst the crowd throwing something with his right hand towards a line of uniformed police officers wearing body armour and helmets. He then mounts a bicycle and then rides away from the officers."

The charge comes in relation to the disorder seen on St Luke's Road in Southport. Hundreds of people gathered and threw bricks at police officers, set a vehicle alight and damaged a local mosque. The riots followed a peaceful vigil for three young girls who died following a mass stabbing the previous day.

In brief mitigation, Heather Toohey defending said that because of his age and lack of previous convictions he can only be dealt with by a referral order. Judge Healey adjourns sentencing to September 17 so the youth offending team can prepare a pre-sentence report.

The boy will be sentenced at a youth court. The boy is given bail provided he doesn’t set foot on St Luke’s Road in Southport. The boys’ parents thanked the judge as they left the courtroom.

Earlier in the morning a 15-year-old appeared in court. Also sitting at the back of court and flanked by his parents, he denied the offence of burglary. However, his counsel Chris Bivon said the teenager would accept the lesser charge of theft.

The court heard the teenager was accused of stealing a vape from a shop in the city centre which had its windows smashed during unrest on August 3. The boy said he picked it up from the street and not inside the shop itself.

Judge Healey told the boy: "You face one allegation of burglary. You pleaded not guilty. You admit being present and coming into possession of a vape, but you deny you entered the shop as a trespasser. You said you would plead guilty to the charge of theft."

The teenager will appear for trial in relation to the burglary charge on November 14. He was bailed on the condition he sleeps every night at his home address.

The two boys are among 30 people to be charged in connection with the disorder seen in Southport, Liverpool city centre and Walton. The first riots followed the deaths of the three girls when people spread false information about the alleged attacker's supposed ethnicity, nationality and religion.

However, the Honorary Recorder of Liverpool Andrew Menary KC said last week that riots were "used as a pretext for widespread violence, intimidation and damage". Following the riots in Merseyside, disorder spread to towns and cities around the country. Police had made 927 arrests and 466 people had been charged across the country by Sunday afternoon.