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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Bikers jailed for airport brawl | Bikers jailed for airport brawl |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| Seven members of two rival biker gangs have been jailed for six years each for their part in a mass brawl between the gangs at an airport. | |
| Up to 30 members of the Hells Angels and Outlaw biker groups clashed at Birmingham Airport last January, some wielding knuckledusters and hammers. | Up to 30 members of the Hells Angels and Outlaw biker groups clashed at Birmingham Airport last January, some wielding knuckledusters and hammers. |
| An eighth man due to be sentenced has fled the country, Birmingham Crown Court heard. | An eighth man due to be sentenced has fled the country, Birmingham Crown Court heard. |
| Four men were members of the Outlaws and three were with the Hells Angels. | |
| The fight started when a few gang members spotted a small group of rival bikers on the same flight back from Alicante, Spain, the court heard. | The fight started when a few gang members spotted a small group of rival bikers on the same flight back from Alicante, Spain, the court heard. |
| Three injured | Three injured |
| They rang ahead for reinforcements who met them at the airport with various weapons, including a meat cleaver. | They rang ahead for reinforcements who met them at the airport with various weapons, including a meat cleaver. |
| Passengers had to take cover from the violence that ensued in the arrivals area, the court heard. | |
| Three gang members were injured and one suffered a serious head injury. | Three gang members were injured and one suffered a serious head injury. |
| Four Outlaws - Mark Moseley, 46, of Orchard Rise, Sheldon, Birmingham; Neale Harrison, 46, of Bell Green Road, Coventry; Mark Price, 50, from Westbury Road, Nuneaton, Warwickshire; and Jeremy Ball, 46, from Plant Street, Cheadle, Staffordshire; were found guilty of rioting in May. | Four Outlaws - Mark Moseley, 46, of Orchard Rise, Sheldon, Birmingham; Neale Harrison, 46, of Bell Green Road, Coventry; Mark Price, 50, from Westbury Road, Nuneaton, Warwickshire; and Jeremy Ball, 46, from Plant Street, Cheadle, Staffordshire; were found guilty of rioting in May. |
| Three Hells Angels - Paul Arlett, 35, from Penn Road, Wolverhampton; Sean Timmins 38, from Briewood Road, Wolverhampton; and Leonard Hawthorne, 52, of Eve Lane, Dudley; were also found guilty of rioting last month. | Three Hells Angels - Paul Arlett, 35, from Penn Road, Wolverhampton; Sean Timmins 38, from Briewood Road, Wolverhampton; and Leonard Hawthorne, 52, of Eve Lane, Dudley; were also found guilty of rioting last month. |
| Costly police presence | |
| But the court heard on Friday that that Mark Larner, 47, from Penn Road, Wolverhampton, had left the UK for South Africa "with a substantial amount of money, and clearly is therefore at large". | But the court heard on Friday that that Mark Larner, 47, from Penn Road, Wolverhampton, had left the UK for South Africa "with a substantial amount of money, and clearly is therefore at large". |
| A warrant was issued for his arrest but he was not sentenced in his absence. | A warrant was issued for his arrest but he was not sentenced in his absence. |
| Sentencing the men, Judge Patrick Thomas QC, said the jail terms would have a substantial impact on the families of the convicted men but their actions gave him no choice. | |
| West Midlands Police said the "horrendous" violence during the riot was unprecedented in the history of the airport. | |
| A costly police security operation - including the presence of armed officers - was carried out for the duration of the six-week trial. | |
| Officers worked with colleagues in the Warwickshire force which said on Friday that attempts were being made to prevent the annual Hells Angel Bulldog Bash near Stratford-upon-Avon from going ahead later in the summer. | |
| Bill Holland, Assistant Chief Constable of Warwickshire Police, said they were taking legal advice to have the event's licence withdrawn after organisers were granted a 10-year licence by district councillors last year. | |
| "It is a matter of official record that over many years, outlaw motorcycle clubs have been actively engaged in organised crime," he said. | |
| "There is a clear, evidenced, and significant risk to innocent members of the public if the Bulldog Bash is allowed to take place." |