Four people charged with criminal damage after the toppling of the Colston statue have pleaded not guilty.

The defendants who appeared in court for the first time on Monday, January 25^th have chosen to be tried by judge and jury, rejecting the proposal of a summary trial.

The case has been adjourned to February 8, when it will be heard at Bristol Court Crown.

Rhian Graham, 29, Milo Ponsford, 25, Jake Skuse, 32, and Sage Willoughby, 21 all deny the charged of criminal damage.

Six others arrested in the weeks and months after the toppling of the statue have already accepted conditional police cautions for their part in the incident.

Raj Chada, head of criminal defence, and Laura O’Brien, associate at the social-justice law firm Hodge Jones & Allen have made the following statement on behalf of three of the defendants: “We will fight these criminal charges vigorously on behalf of our clients.

“We are committed to defending them and their right to a fair trial in this important case.

“We ask that their privacy is respected.”

District Judge Lynne Matthews is presiding the case.

Editor-in-Chief | Carl D. Pearson has been involved in British politics and media from an early age, with the key knowledge of what it takes to run a news organisation for the 21st century.  Mr Pearson, as Editor-in-chief, is responsible for supervising the daily tasks of publishing media and content to UNN’s website and various platforms.  

This content was sourced from Unity News Network.