Two charged after Just Stop Oil protesters sprayed private jets with orange paint at Stansted Airport
21 June 2024, 19:05 | Updated: 21 June 2024, 19:46
Two people have been charged after Just Stop Oil protesters sprayed private jets with orange paint at Stansted Airport on Thursday.
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Jennifer Kowalski, 28, and Cole Macdonald, 22, have been charged with criminal damage, aggravated trespass and interfering with national infrastructure, Essex Police said.
Officers were called in the early hours of Thursday following reports of the women gaining access to the area, which is away from the runway at Stansted Airport.
Just Stop Oil said activists were targeting Taylor Swift's aircraft which they claimed had landed hours earlier but it later emerged it was not there.
Read more: Starmer says eco mob 'needs to feel the full force of the law' as he slams 'pathetic' Just Stop Oil
Just Stop Oil break into Stansted Airport and spray orange paint on planes
In a post on Twitter, the group said: "Jennifer and Cole cut the fence into the private airfield at Stansted where @taylorswift13's jet is parked, demanding an emergency treaty to end fossil fuels by 2030."
The accompanying video showed an activist cutting a hole in the airfield's metal fence using an angle grinder.
One activist, wearing a Just Stop Oil T-shirt, was then seen spraying the fuselage and windows of two parked white planes with orange paint, before both then sit together in front of the planes on the tarmac.
The attack is the latest stunt by the eco-protesters and came after protesters sparked fury by desecrated Stonehenge with orange paint.
Keir Starmer lambasts 'pathetic' Just Stop Oil protesters
A statement from Essex Police read: "Two women have been charged as part of our response to an incident in the private area of an airfield at Stansted Airport.
"We were called shortly before 5.10am yesterday, Thursday June 20, to reports of two people having gained access to an area which is away from the runway and main passenger terminal, before causing damage to two aircraft.
"As a result of our preparedness for incidents of this kind, officers were on the scene quickly and two people were arrested within nine minutes of the moment of the call being made to us.
"Having worked closely with colleagues in the Crown Prosecution Service, Cole Macdonald, 22, of Baker Street, Brighton, and Jennifer Kowalski, 28, of Williamson Avenue, Dumbarton, have now been charged with criminal damage valued at more than £5,000, aggravated trespass and interfering with national infrastructure.
"Both women are due to appear at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court tomorrow, Saturday June 22."
Chief Superintendent Simon Anslow said: "I would like to reassure passengers and the wider public that we are well prepared and resourced to deal with incidents of this nature.
"Almost immediately after we were made aware of this incident, which took place away from the main passenger terminal, we were on the scene.
"We maintain a constant presence at the airport and this presence will be heightened over the summer period.
"We have a good working relationship with Stansted Airport to ensure you can go about your travels with minimal impact.
"We are not anti-protest but we will always take action where criminal acts take place."
