A woman from Manchester could be facing jail after pleading guilty to criminal damage – an incident in which she poured human faeces over a memorial to Captain Sir Tom Moore.
The 21-year-old carried out the stunt as part of a climate protest, wearing a t-shirt that said ‘End UK private jets’.
Video shared on social media showed her pouring a canister of human waste over the life-size statue of the World War II veteran and fundraiser.
The statue is located in Thistley Meadow, Hatton, south Derbyshire, and was placed there as a tribute to Captain Tom, who raised almost £33 million for NHS charities by walking lockdown laps of his garden in the run up to his 100th birthday.
He died with Covid-19 in February 2021, shortly after he was knighted by the Queen.
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Madeleine Budd of Kedlestone Avenue was arrested in London on Sunday 2 October.
Derbyshire Police charged her on Monday with criminal damage to a war memorial to the value of £200.
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She appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court today, where she pleaded guilty.
Prosecutor Jordan Pratt told the court: “This offence lasted for a short amount of time, it is only 30 seconds in length but the impact of this offence is substantial.”
He continued: “This is an abhorrent act. I do not need to remind the court of the impact that Sir Tom had.
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“He was a figurehead that a number of people rallied around in a fundraising effort that raised tens of millions of pounds in the height of the pandemic.”
In posts from the End UK Private Jets campaign group, Budd was quoted as saying: “Every time a private jet takes off, we pour a bucket of sh*t and blood on everything captain Tom stood for.”
Budd was remanded in custody until her hearing on 25 October.
Greater Manchester public urged to help get people ‘off the streets and on their feet’ before Christmas
Emily Sergeant
Locals are being urged to help get hundreds of people “off the streets and back on their feet” this festive season.
As the temperatures told colder by the day, and Christmas creeps closer and closer, Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity is bringing back ‘1000 Beds for Christmas’, and the massively-important initiative is aiming to provide 1,000 nights of accommodation to people at risk of homelessness before the big day arrives.
Forming part of the ongoing ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme, this festive fundraising mission is designed to provide food, shelter, warmth, and dedicated vital wrap-around support for those who need it most.
The charity says it wants to build on the “incredible success of 2023”, which raised more than £55,000 and provided 1,800 nights of accommodation.
Stockport-based property finance specialists, Together – which has supported the campaign for the last two years – has, once again, generously pledged to match every public donation for the first £20,000 raised.
Unfamiliar with the ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme? Since 2017, when rough sleeping peaked, the initiative has helped ensure a significantly-higher rate of reduction in the numbers of people facing a night on streets in Greater Manchester than seen nationally.
The landmark scheme has given people the chance to rebuild their lives, while also giving them access to key services and opportunities that allows them to stay off the streets for good.
Despite the scheme’s recent success, organisations across Greater Manchester are under “a huge amount of pressure” to meet the demand for their services this winter, and given the current economic outlook, household budgets will continue to be squeezed – leaving people on the sharp end of inequality and poverty.