Man who took part in riot outside hotel jailed

A man who admitted violent disorder and stealing from four shops during the Hull riot has been jailed.

Ashley Smith, 26, was seen on CCTV footage pushing a metal barrier on to Ferensway, outside a hotel which was being protected by police.

He was also seen throwing an object towards officers in a different part of the city and taking items from shops that had their windows smashed by looters.

Smith, of Woodhill Way Caravan Park, in Cottingham, was sentenced to 20 months in prison at Hull Crown Court.

His barrister Abigail Rowley told the court Smith had acted "wholly out of character" and was "full of remorse".

She claimed her client did not "hold any discriminatory views" and was not an instigator in the violence.

Shops were looted, fires started, cars damaged and police officers attacked following demonstrations involving anti-immigration protesters on 3 August last year.

Passing sentence, Judge John Thackray KC said: "Your offence formed part of 12 hours of racist, mob-fuelled violence" which caused " fear and distress in those communities who were targeted".

Smith pleaded guilty to one charge of violent disorder and four counts of burglary of commercial premises.

The judge did not impose an uplift to Smith's sentence as he accepted there was no racially motivated element to his offences.

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