A man who urinated just a short distance away from a hero police officer’s memorial plaque has been jailed.
In court today, 28-year-old Andrew Banks claimed he had visited London, from Stansted, to defend statues from Black Lives Matter demonstrators on Saturday – but was unsure which ones to protect.
Instead, Banks consumed 16 pints of beer and relived himself next to a plaque erected in memory of PC Keith Palmer, an officer who was stabbed to death by a terrorist in 2017 whilst trying to protect members of the public from the killer.
When a photograph of him engaged in the act was circulated on social media, The Met issued a witness appeal and asked the man to contact police. He handed himself in Essex on Sunday, was arrested and subsequently charged with outraging public decency.
He pleaded guilty to the offence this morning and was sentenced to 14 days imprisonment. Banks was told her would severe half the term if he demonstrated good behavior. He will also pay a fine of £128 and ordered him to pay costs of £85.
During sentencing this morning, England and Wales chief magistrate Emma Arbuthnot said: “I accept that you are remorseful. You have explained you were so drunk you did not know where you were urinating. You explained that you had had 16 pints. You explained that you were with a group of football supporters who came up to Westminster to protect monuments.
“The irony is that rather than protecting the monuments, you very nearly ended up urinating on one. The harm caused is the upset and shock felt by members of the public who saw the images that generated a strong sense of revulsion.”
Commander Bas Javid said: “Keith Palmer was a brave police officer and the memorial stands testament to his courage. Bank’s actions, in stark contrast, were unpleasant and extremely upsetting to PC Palmer’s family and colleagues.
“While I note that Banks did not act with intent, I welcome the sentence handed down by the court for his thoughtless and distasteful behaviour.”
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Should have given the guy some cleaning materials a d got him to work cleaning the graffiti of statues and memorials.