(BBC News) George Herd - Ruth Hogg, 40, has been found guilty of conspiracy to commit criminal damage at the Teledyne Labtech factory in Presteigne, Powys, after protesters caused 1.2 million pounds in damage. Hogg was part of a group that believed the factory made circuit boards for Israeli drones. Hogg admitted smashing panes of glass, spraying red paint into the plant, and was filmed drilling holes in the roof of the factory. Other protesters entered the factory floor where they smashed computer screens and set off smoke grenades. Prosecutor Elen Owen said the attack was "professionally planned" and likened it to a "terrorist attack." "They targeted a small factory in rural Wales with, at best, tenuous links to the arms companies because it would give them maximum publicity for minimum effort." The site was not a military facility, but made circuit boards for MRI scanners and radar equipment. The jury was told that the factory last made circuit boards for Israel in 2009, which were used for mobile phone towers. Judge Rhys Rowlands told Hogg, "Good people on occasion do bad things - and this was a very bad thing."
2023-05-22 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive