A Stirling man is facing jail after admitting that his part in a climate change protest at a fuel distribution depot put the public in danger.
Lewis Conroy, 23, and two fellow protestors from England, Jack Rennie, 31, from Sussex, and Gregory Sculthorpe, 38, from Doncaster, climbed onto facilities at the Ineos plant in Grangemouth, Stirlingshire, and chained themselves to pipework there.
Falkirk Sheriff Court was told that the trio refused to descend despite repeated requests from police and plant employees.
Their actions risked causing damage to the pipes and the discharge of hazardous substances, exposing the public to the risk of injury and harm.
Specialist officers had to be called in to remove them.
Repeat incident
The incident happened on July 19 2023.
In a repeat incident at the same plant 10 days later, Rennie and Samual Griffiths, 49 from Walthamstow, east London, again got into the plant and chained themselves to the pipes. Once again, police specialists were required to remove them.
All four men pleaded guilty on indictment to culpable and reckless endangerment.
Sheriff Maryam Labaki deferred sentence until March 21 for background reports, including an assessment of the suitability of the accused for a restriction of liberty “tagging” order as a direct alternative to custody.
She continued bail, but warned them: “These are serious matters.”
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