Father-of-four jailed after throwing missile in ‘baying mob’ during protest

A father-of-four has been jailed for 28 months after throwing a missile and shouting racist remarks towards a hotel housing migrants.

David Jordan, 59, was sentenced at Stafford Crown Court on Tuesday for his behaviour during a protest outside the Holiday Inn Express hotel in Tamworth on August 4.

Jordan, who pleaded guilty to violent disorder, could be seen in video footage throwing a missile in the direction of the hotel, which he claims was an apple core, shouting “f****** paedos” towards the hotel and telling police officers to “f*** off”.

The defendant, of Tamworth Road in Tamworth, also messaged a contact on Facebook on August 5 asking them to spread the word that some migrants had been moved to a different hotel.

Prosecution barrister Fiona Cortese told the court that during a police interview, Jordan said he had not planned to attend the protest and that he was an “angry old man shouting his mouth off” and “acting like a complete twat”.

Defending Jordan, Harinderpal Singh Dhami said: “As far as the harm is concerned, I imagine the fear the people in the hotel felt, the police, and the community as a whole watching on the TV.

“He now accepts fully the way he conducted himself was far from a peaceful protest.”

Sentencing Jordan, Judge John Edwards said: “You rightly hung your head in shame as we watched the video.

“I have looked with care at the footage, you are front and centre of this baying mob for an hour-and-a-half.”