A bus driver who was at the forefront of the mob violence outside a hotel housing asylum seekers has “utterly wrecked his life” after turning it around, a judge said as he jailed him for three years. John Webster, 41, was a “prominent participant” in the confrontations between rioters and police outside the Holiday Inn Express, in Manvers, Rotherham, on August 4, Sheffield Crown Court heard on Thursday.
Footage was shown in court of Webster involved in two different incidents, including one in which he could be seen kicking out at the police lines. Judge Jeremy Richardson KC heard how the defendant screamed at officers and filmed as he refused their instructions to move, along with scores of other men who were attacking officers.
The judge was told that Webster had a lengthy criminal record of 45 different offences, which included affray, criminal damage, battery and harassment, but he had “turned his life around” after serving a four-year prison sentence for making threats to kill.
Judge Richardson praised the defendant for getting a bus driving licence and securing a job, saying he had received a glowing reference from his current employer. He said it was therefore a “tragedy” that Webster had “utterly wrecked his life” by taking part in the violence.
