Violence began in Leeds suburb in July after rumours spread about treatment of four children taken into care
Fires burning in Harehills, Leeds, on 18 July. Photograph: Robyn Vinter/The Guardian
Four men have been jailed for taking part in “dystopian” mob violence that engulfed a Leeds suburb after rumours spread about the treatment of four children who were taken into care.
A judge said the disorder in Harehills on 18 July was “a chilling example of how a violent, anarchic mob can, with astonishing ease, achieve a situation of complete lawlessness”.
Leeds crown court heard on Tuesday that the violence stemmed from rumours that Roma children were being mistreated by the authorities.
During the disorder a double decker bus was stopped by a crowd and set alight, forcing the driver and passengers to flee. Missiles were also thrown and a police car overturned.
Three men involved in the bus fire were jailed after pleading guilty to aggravated arson and violent disorder. Iustin Dobre, 37, and Mark Mitchell, 34, were jailed for six years, and Milan Zamostny, 30, was jailed for five years and four months.
Celan Palaghia, 21, was jailed for three years after pleading guilty to arson and violent disorder.
The prosecutor Richard Holland said the disorder grew out of a reaction to four children being taken into care.
He said police were called to help social services at around 5pm when a group gathered outside a house and started “shouting and growing disorderly”.
The crowd continued to grow and police “were forced to withdraw” after becoming outnumbered and targeted by missiles.
Attempts were made to enlist the help of a Roma councillor to calm the rising tension, but by 6.30pm between 300 and 400 people were on the street, the court heard.
Holland said the bus was stopped by the crowd and the driver and passengers were forced to flee as the vehicle “succumbed to the growing mob surrounding it”.
The court heard the cost of the damage to the bus was around £500,000 and the driver had been out of the business since the “traumatic” incident for mental health reasons.
None of the four defendants, who appeared via videolink from prison, were involved in the initial incident but joined in the violence that ensued.
Paul Addison, representing Dobre, a father of three, said he became “drawn into the disorder” after hearing rumours “that some children from the Roma community had been maltreated by the authorities and the police”.
He said Dobre “saw others acting violently and joined in” but that he accepted he “acted in a deplorable, violent way” and “apologises to the community in Harehills, of which he is a member, for bringing deep shame and discredit upon them”.
Statements from residents described concerns about the bus exploding, while one person described “seeing women and children outside the mosque wailing with fear in their eyes”.
Addressing the defendants, Judge Bayliss said: “What happened that summer evening serves as a chilling example of how a violent, anarchic mob can, with astonishing ease, achieve a situation of complete lawlessness.
“It also offers a dystopian vision of what can happen when the rule of law is subverted by mob violence.”
After the sentencing Tracy Brabin, the mayor of West Yorkshire, said the “chaos” was caused by a mindless minority.
“I saw first-hand the impact that this violent disorder had on the community, and I am pleased that justice has now been served.”
