Anti-migrant protester fined for criminal damage

An anti-immigration protester has been ordered to pay £197 for criminal damage and obstructing the highway.

David Kenny McNally, 33, took part in a South Coast Patriots march through Portsmouth, Hampshire, on 12 September.

Hundreds of Patriots supporters and anti-racism campaigners waved flags and banners in Guildhall Square, with police keeping the two groups apart.

McNally, of Winchester Road, pleaded guilty to the offences. Portsmouth magistrates fined him £80 and imposed costs of £117.

The defendant was one of two people arrested at the event.

The other - Timothy Miller, 76, of Sherwood Avenue in Hedge End - is due to go on trial in February for allegedly wearing a burqa to conceal his identity.

The protests followed disorder at Eastney on 6 September, when demonstrators blocked roads in front of coaches carrying 120 migrants, who had crossed the Channel in a dinghy.

Posting on Facebook after his court hearing, McNally said the criminal damage was to a police van and he considered the sentence a "win".