LONDON: A UK animal rights activist who caused thousands of pounds’ worth of damage to a fountain in front of Buckingham Palace was on Friday handed an 18-month jail sentence and warned he faced “severe” punishment if he reoffended.

The sentencing of “seasoned protester” Louis McKechnie, 23, follows a toughening of the sentences meted out to direct action protesters.

The UK has seen a string of headline-grabbing stunts over recent years, from massive traffic disruption caused by protesters scaling bridges or motorway gantries, to attacks on art works or historic sites.

McKechnie and four other Animal Rebellion members poured red dye into the fountain near the royal residence in Aug 2021 to “create the impression of a bloodbath”, the hearing at Southwark Crown Court was told. The activists were seeking to draw attention to the use of crown land for hunting and animal farming. McKechnie’s 18-month sentence will be served at the same time as another, similar sentence he is currently serving.

Warning him he faced a much longer term if he took part in any further such protests, Judge Gregory Perrins said McKechnie had been “extremely fortunate to have been dealt with relatively leniently by the courts in the past”.

Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2024