Southport: man jailed after being recognised during violent disorder by police officer schoolmate
33-year-old Paul Dryhurst was given a two year sentence at Liverpool Crown Court
A man recognised by a police officer he went to school with during violent disorder outside a mosque in Southport has been jailed.
Paul Dryhurst, 33, was seen to "smile with satisfaction" while outside the mosque, in the wake of the Southport stabbings.
Simon Leong, prosecuting, said "misinformation and lies" were spread on social media following the fatal knife attack at a dance class in the town on July 29 and led to huge numbers gathering outside the Southport Islamic Society Mosque, as evening prayers were under way, following a vigil in the town on July 30.
He said Dryhurst, of Gale Road, Litherland, was caught on footage from the scene and identified by a police constable, who recognised him as someone he went to school with.
Sentencing him, Judge Denis Watson KC said: "You can be seen to pick up some item, throw it at police before seeming to smile in satisfaction then taking up a position to film the disorder."
The court heard a number of letters had been received by the court from customers, business contacts and family friends of Dryhurst.