Sheffield man 'too drunk to remember throwing objects at riot police' jailed
Charlie Eames is the latest person to be jailed after violence outside a Rotherham hotel
A 30-year-old Sheffield man, who claimed he was too drunk to remember throwing an object at riot police outside at hotel housing more than 200 asylum seekers, has been jailed for two-and-a-half years.
It follows violence outside the Holiday Inn Express, in Manvers, Rotherham, on August 4.
Police body-worn camera footage was shown at Sheffield Crown Court on Thursday which showed Charlie Eames, of High Street, Sheffield, at the front of the crowd with no shirt, but wearing a padded gillet and with a bottle of alcohol pushed down his waistband.
When prosecutor Neil Coxon suggested this was a bottle of beer, Eames corrected him over the prison videolink, stating it was a bottle of Stones Ginger Wine.
The footage showed Eames throwing an unknown object at the line of riot shields and then encouraging another man in a mask to throw a large piece of wood at officers.
Rebecca Tanner, defending, told the court her client was an alcoholic, had drunk a substantial amount before the incident captured on video, and could not remember throwing the object, which the court heard could have been a branch.
She said Eames, who admitted violent disorder, had seen the protest happening outside the hotel on TikTok before it turned violent and decided go along, believing it to be "peaceful".
Ms Tanner told the court: "He readily accepts he was highly intoxicated."
She added: "When the mood shifted, he became a willing participant."
More than 80 people have now been charged, and more than 30 jailed, following the violence involving around 400 people who targeted the hotel, which was housing 240 asylum seekers.
Some of the mob broke into the building and tried to set it on fire as 64 police officers, three police horses and a police dog were injured.