Man in EDL rally outside asylum seeker hotel says he was merely walking his dog | UK News

A man accused of taking part in a violent protest outside a Merseyside hotel housing asylum seekers has told a court he was walking his dog.

Footage shows Daniel Fulham lifting his Jack Russell above his head in front of a police cordon outside Suites Hotel in Knowsley, Merseyside, on February 10 last year.

The protest – said to have been organised by the English Defence League (EDL) -saw hundreds of people surrounding the property and shouting ‘get them out’.

Fulham is one of five men on trial for violent disorder at Liverpool Crown Court.

The 39-year-old said he had been in the area to walk his dog Jessie, adding that he was shouting ‘this is our road’ during the rally in reference to himself and his dog, who he said regularly walk down the road.

‘It could be called Jessie’s road because we go there that often,’ he told the court.

The trial has heard there was ‘ill feeling’ in the Kirkby area after a video appearing to show an asylum seeker from the hotel asking a 15-year-old girl for her phone number and a kiss was shared on social media.

Fulham admitted he was told about the video showing ‘that poor baby getting touched by them people’.

He accepted telling a police officer ‘f**k you’ but denied that it was a threat of violence.

Three officers were injured and a police van was set on fire during the rally.

Fulham said he left the area because ‘stuff started going mad’ and went home.

Asked what he thought about the incident afterwards, he said: ‘I thought it was shit on my dog, to be honest.’

His co-defendant Jonjo O’Donoghue told the court he had gone along to the protest ‘out of boredom’.

The 21-year-old said he and two friends got a taxi from Kensington, Liverpool, to the area and when he arrived, between 10pm and 10.30pm, he saw the burnt out police van.

He said: ‘That was the reason why I didn’t stay very long because the scene was quite agitated, the crowd was quite agitated.’

O’Donoghue told the court he was handed two fireworks by someone, but said he had ‘no idea’ who had given them to him.

Brian McPadden, 61, Thomas Mills, 47, and Paul Lafferty, 42, are standing trial alongside O’Donoghue and Fulham.

All five men accept being present on the night but deny violent disorder.

The trial will continue on Wednesday, when the jury is expected to hear legal directions.

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