Boy, 16, who stole £19,000 worth of vapes among those in court over offences during far-right unrest

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A teenager has pleaded guilty to stealing £19,000 worth of vapes as a man admitted taking knuckledusters to a protest in the latest line of thugs arrested over far-right violence that swept the country last week.

The 16-year-old admitted the theft of the vapes as Liverpool was engulfed by riots following a stabbing attack in Southport that left three young girls dead.

The boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, used an electric scooter to smash the window of a shop before stealing £15,000 worth of disposable e-cigarettes on 3 August, Sky News reported.

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He then went to another shop where he looted another £4,000 worth of vapes after jumping on top of a police vehicle and smashing its windscreen.

He was also seen on CCTV with a group of people who pulled a police officer off his bike before attacking him, Liverpool Magistrates’ Court heard.

He pleaded guilty to all charges and was released on bail with conditions after appearing at Liverpool Magistrates’ Court. He will be sentenced at the city’s youth court on 17 September.

Meanwhile, a 42-year-old scaffolder from Southampton admitted possessing a knuckle-duster during riots in the city on 7 August.

Lee James was arrested at his home in the Hampshire city after police were told he had the weapon in Grosvenor Square.

His lawyer said James had attended the protest “out of curiosity” and “couldn’t get it off” after putting the weapon on his hand due to having “quite thick knuckles”. She stressed he was “not a racist”.

Representing him, Janet Brownlow said there was “no suggestion” James had threatened anyone with the knuckle duster. He was remanded into custody and will appear before a sentencing hearing on 12 August.

In London, a man who racially abused and spat at a bus driver in the same week of unrest was convicted of a racially aggravated public order offence and criminal damage.

The driver had refused to let passenger Michael Mongan board as he did not have sufficient funds to pay for his journey.

Mongan then spat at the bus driver’s cab a number of times while shouting Islamophobic abuse and other threats.

Far-right mob violence swept the country after three young girls Bebe and Alice, both nine, and Elsie, seven, were killed in an attack on a Taylor Swift-themed dance class on 29 July.

Soon after the attack, false claims of the suspect’s identity were spread online with some posts speculating he was a Muslim migrant who had arrived in the UK by boat in 2023.

Merseyside Police later identified the suspect as 17-year-old Axel Rudakubana, of Banks in Lancashire.

He has been charged with the murder of the three girls at the Hart Space in Southport, Merseyside. He is also charged with the attempted murder of yoga class instructor Leanne Lucas, businessman John Hayes, and eight children, who cannot be named for legal reasons, and possession of a kitchen knife with a curved blade.