Five men responsible for Bonfire Night disorder in the North East of Edinburgh last year were convicted at Edinburgh Sheriff Court yesterday.
Lewis Park, Dylan Martins, Dylan McArdle, Connor Murray and Liam Willis all pled guilty to being involved in the incidents, which occurred within the Craigentinny area on November 5th 2017.
Officers responded to numerous calls in relation to vehicles being set alight, fireworks being thrown and property being damaged. A police officer responding to an incident was also injured.
On the evening of Bonfire Night, officers made four arrests and following an indepth investigation, enforcement activity was carried out within Leith, Drylaw and Craigentinny on Friday 15th December 2017, resulting in seven men being charged.
Park (20), Martins (18), McArdle (19), Murray (18) and Willis (19) will all be sentenced In November.
Chief Superintendent Gareth Blair, Divisional Commander for Edinburgh, said: “The level of disorder and destruction our communities in North West and North East Edinburgh had to endure last Bonfire Night was completely unacceptable to me and the public who stood up and assisted us in finding the evidence to identify and convict those responsible. I would therefore like to thank them for their ongoing support.
“These five individuals played a significant role in the incidents last year, and I want their convictions to send a very clear message to those thinking of carrying out similar offences this year, that such actions will not be tolerated.
“Lessons have been learned since 2017 and planning for this year is at an advanced stage in terms of resourcing and working alongside key partners.
“We will have increased resourcing at our disposal allowing us to robustly respond to incidents and keep the public and emergency services personnel safe.”
John graduated from Telford College in 2010 with an HNC in Practical Journalism and since then he worked for the North Edinburgh News, The Southern Reporter, the Irish News Review and The Edinburgh Reporter. In addition he has been published in the Edinburgh Evening News and the Hibernian FC Programme.
