A 36-year-old woman named Kaylee Cunningham has been sentenced to 12 months in jail for providing a false alibi for a 15-year-old boy who participated in a riot outside a hotel where asylum seekers were housed. Instead of telling the truth, Cunningham claimed that the boy was at her home when he was actually part of a group throwing rocks and wood at riot police outside the Holiday Inn Express hotel in Manvers, Rotherham, on August 4 of the previous year. After she provided the false alibi, the boy was initially arrested but was later released by the police.
During the investigation, it was discovered that the teenager had filmed himself engaging in the disorder on his phone. Despite Cunningham’s assertion that she was coerced into lying by the boy’s father, Judge Jeremy Richardson KC dismissed her claim. The judge emphasized that Cunningham had been explicitly warned by the police about the consequences of providing false information. In response to her actions, Judge Richardson stated, “You have been very, very foolish and, I’m afraid, you have to be punished.” He added, “It was a pernicious act to do as you did, and you did it entirely wilfully. Courts do not like liars, and you were a liar.”
At Sheffield Youth Court, the boy, whose identity remains protected by law, received a 12-month referral order after admitting to engaging in violent disorder. The court also disclosed that over 70 individuals have been sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court for their involvement in the riot, resulting in injuries to 64 police officers, three horses, and a police dog. Additionally, more than 200 asylum seekers and staff were trapped inside the hotel during the turmoil, with some rioters unlawfully entering the building
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