Lifestyle
Four Just Stop Oil Activists Jailed Over Manchester Airport Chaos Plot
Four Just Stop Oil protesters have been sentenced to a combined total of seven years and four months in prison for conspiring to cause major disruption at Manchester Airport in a foiled protest that authorities say could have affected thousands of travellers.
Daniel Knorr, 22, Leonorah Ward, 22, Indigo Rumbelow, 30, and Margaret Reid, 54, were convicted at Minshull Street Crown Court in Manchester on Tuesday, May 27, of conspiracy to intentionally cause a public nuisance. The group planned to breach airport security on August 5, 2023, with bolt cutters, angle grinders, glue, and sand, intending to stick themselves to a taxiway and draw national media attention to their climate activism.
- Lorraine Kelly Just Dragged Love Island’s New Cast and She’s Not Wrong
- Heartbreaking Tragedy as Baby Girl Dies After Being Left Alone with Five-Year-Old Aunt
- Labour Sparks Outrage After Minister Claims Small Boat Migrants Mostly Women and Kids
- Princess Eugenie makes a royal appearance as she leaves a quiet but powerful impact
- Government Plan to Remove Asylum Seekers from Costly Hotels Could Shake Up the System
Their plot was stopped before it could be executed, thanks to intelligence-led policing by Greater Manchester Police. During sentencing, Judge Jason MacAdam said the planned protest “would have caused misery to thousands of people” had it gone ahead. He imposed custodial sentences of two and a half years for Rumbelow, two years for Knorr, and 18 months each for Reid and Ward.
Ward, upon hearing her sentence, defiantly shouted from the dock, raising an orange card and declaring, “Courts are complicit, billions will die without action.”
The Manchester Evening News reports, A fifth alleged conspirator, 19-year-old Noah Crane from Birmingham, was acquitted, having not been present on the day of the attempted protest.
The court heard that the aim of the disruption was to draw attention to climate change and fossil fuel dependency, but prosecutors and the judge concluded that the method chosen posed serious risks to public safety.
Reid, who represented herself in court, said: “I did feel morally compelled to act in the face of death. That remains the case and I stand by my motives.” She described her actions as coming “from a place of service, not arrogance.”
Defence lawyer Laura O’Brien, representing Ward and Rumbelow, said: “These are otherwise law-abiding citizens… people who have a deep fundamental care not just for their families, but for people around the globe.”
Assistant Chief Constable Chris Sykes of Greater Manchester Police said, “Anyone who disrupts the safety and security of an airport can expect to be dealt with swiftly and robustly.” He praised the collaboration and meticulous investigation that led to the activists’ arrests and convictions.
Rad Taylor, Director of Aerodrome Operations at Manchester Airport, said the disruption the group intended to cause would have been significant and dangerous, noting, “The potential consequences did not bear thinking about.”
Nicola Wells, Senior Crown Prosecutor for CPS North West, added: “This was a targeted attack… causing serious disruption to the travel plans of tens of thousands of individuals. When protest crosses into criminality, we will not hesitate to prosecute.”
- Lorraine Kelly Just Dragged Love Island’s New Cast and She’s Not Wrong
- Heartbreaking Tragedy as Baby Girl Dies After Being Left Alone with Five-Year-Old Aunt
- Labour Sparks Outrage After Minister Claims Small Boat Migrants Mostly Women and Kids
- Princess Eugenie makes a royal appearance as she leaves a quiet but powerful impact
- Government Plan to Remove Asylum Seekers from Costly Hotels Could Shake Up the System
(Image: GMP )
