Cardiff councillor to pay hundreds after police station protest
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Ted Peskett
Local Democracy Reporting Service
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Councillor Imran Latif locked himself to another person at a police station protest in June 2024
A councillor has been ordered to pay hundreds of pounds after he locked himself to another person as part of a protest at a police station.
Imran Latif, who represents the Penylan ward at Cardiff council, was suspended from the Liberal Democrats group last year after he was charged with two offences relating to the June 2024 protest about an individual who had been arrested at an earlier demonstration.
The 45-year-old pleaded guilty to locking himself to a person to cause significant disturbance at a Cardiff Magistrates' Court hearing on Tuesday.
The second charge, of using threatening or abusive words or behaviour likely to cause a disturbance, was dismissed after no evidence was offered.
A total of 16 people were arrested after what police described as a spontaneous protest in the front desk area of Cardiff Bay Police Station at 21:30 BST on 3 June 2024.
It look place just hours after another protest involving 50 to 60 protesters in Cardiff city centre. At the time, it was reported people were protesting against the war in Gaza.
The court heard how Latif entered the police station, sat on the floor and locked himself to another protester.
Jaggery/Geograph
The spontaneous protest took place at Cardiff Bay Police Station, hours after a bigger demonstration in the city centre
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