A Brighton woman has been fined for breaching Covid-19 restrictions during a series of anti-lockdown protests in central London last year.
Louise Creffield, 36, was convicted alongside Piers Corbyn and Vincent Dunmall of participating in three different gatherings of more people than restrictions allowed at the time between August 29 and December 31 2020.
Corbyn, the 75-year-old brother of former Labour leader Jeremy, was also convicted of a fourth protest at Westminster Magistrates Court yesterday.
The offences involved gatherings of more than 30 people between August 29 and October 24 2020 – a time when regulations stated no-one could participate in groups of more than six outdoors unless certain exemptions applied.
Creffield, of Reading Road, was fined £250 for all three dates and she also had to pay £50 in prosecution costs and £34 in surcharges.
Corbyn was fined £750 and had to pay £275 in prosecution costs and £109 in surcharges following the incidents in Trafalgar Square, Westminster and South Bank, the Metropolitan Police said.
Dunmall, 55, from Orpington, south-east London, was fined £175 and he also had to pay £75 in prosecution costs and £34 in surcharges.
Detective Inspector Chris Rudd said: “It was saddening to have to deal with these incidents where large numbers of people illegally gathered in breach of Covid regulations during a national emergency period.
“At a time when so many members of the public were making considerable sacrifices and abiding by the rules to keep others safe, these individuals acted selfishly and risked spreading the virus.
“However, our policing response demonstrated that we were prepared to take action and issue fixed penalty notices to those deliberately flouted the rules.”
Creffield had also been charged with taking part in protests on Brighton seafront in November and December 2020.
However, she was cleared at Brighton Magistrates Court in April after the CPS offered no evidence for the former charge, and the second one was dismissed.
Where I live, Bergamo, Italy (I’m from Brighton), we were ground zero for Covid. We were hearing 20-30 ambulances per day, others more living closer to hospitals. One village lost 70% of its elderly residents, and we suffered the highest number of deaths. Point: it was an unknown factor, it was a shock, it was panic, and all that could be done whilst trying to learn what it was, was to keep people out of harms way TEMPORARILY. People who couldn’t stand this once in a hundred years global pandemic enforced lockdown were ONLY looking out for themselves. Unable to have concern for others at a higher risk than oneself is to have low emotional intelligence: selfishness. The people fighting against a temporary set of restrictions were selfish, and even callous towards unnecessary deaths.