Four guilty of criminal damage during Gaza protest

Four people have been convicted of criminal damage at a Bradford business as part of a pro-Palestine protest.

Julian Gao, 21, Syed Najam Shah, 53, Daniel Jones, 30, and Ruby Hamill, 21, smashed roof tiles and windows with sledgehammers and crowbars at Teledyne UK Ltd, in Shipley, after accessing the property on 2 April 2024.

Bradford Crown Court was told Teledyne manufactured components of weapons which are used by the British Army and purchased by other countries, such as Israel and Ukraine.

The quartet, who staged a 14-hour protest on the roof of the premises and caused an estimated £570,000 worth of damage, will be sentenced on 17 April.

Prosecutor Gerald Hendron said the three men and one woman had put on red boiler suits and used an angle grinder to cut through a security fence at the site at 05:30 BST.

Police were called and the group, who were carrying flags, told them they were protesting at the site due to the conflict in Gaza.

The protest continued until 19:00 the same evening, when the four agreed to come down from the roof, and they were arrested.

Hamill, of Emu Road in London, did not attend court and was tried in her absence.

She, along with Gao, of Dalton Ellis Hall in Manchester, Shah of Reedley Road in Burnley and Jones, of Rossett Road in Liverpool, had all denied causing criminal damage and having articles with intent to destroy or damage property.

However, the jury found all four defendants guilty.

Judge Ahmed Nadim granted the three men in court bail until their sentencing hearing.

But he added: "The overwhelming likelihood is that each of you will be met with a sentence of imprisonment.

"You need to prepare yourself for that eventuality."

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