Teenage gang members sentenced for terrorising victims in Cambridge with racially-aggravated assaults
A gang of teenage boys who terrorised their victims with a series of racially aggravated crimes across Cambridge have been sentenced.
Griffin McGinley, 18, of The Avenue, March, was jailed for a year while five other teenagers, who cannot be named for legal reasons, have been given youth referral orders.
They were found guilty of conspiracy to commit racially-aggravated assaults between August 14 and September 27, 2021.
Cambridge Crown Court heard the group committed up to 40 offences in Mill Road, Hills Road, Burleigh Street, Parker’s Piece and Sidney Street, targeting innocent members of the public with violent and offensive acts, including inciting racial slurs, theft, robbery and criminal damage.
They threw small rocks and cans of drink at people and squirted others with liquids.
In one incident, they threw bottles of hand sanitiser at a person, shouting ‘virus’ at them. They also targeted a person who had been in Cambridge for just 15 days after choosing to study in the UK.
One man was grabbed by the ear as he confronted them. He was assaulted by McGinley, leaving him with a broken nose and in need of surgery.
McGinley was jailed after being found guilty of conspiracy to commit racially aggravated assault and making off without payment.
A 15-year-old from Cambridge, a 16-year-old from Doddington, a 16-year-old from Cambridge and a 17-year-old from Milton were found guilty of conspiracy to commit racially aggravated assault and sentenced to a 12-month Youth Referral Order.
A 17-year-old, also from Doddington, was found guilty of conspiracy to commit racially aggravated assault. He was also sentenced to the order and must undertake 80 hours’ unpaid labour and will be electronically tagged for three months.
A 15-year-old from Cambridge and a 16-year-old from Braintree, Essex, were found guilty of conspiracy to commit racially aggravated public order and sentenced to a 12-month Youth Referral Order.
All of them were given a one-year restraining order, preventing them from being a pedestrian in Mill Road, Hills Road, Burleigh Street, Parkers Piece, Sidney Street and Cambridge Leisure Park.
Det Con Louise Clarke, who investigated, said: “This gang terrorised innocent members of the public with violent and offensive acts.
“The unprovoked attacked caused widespread concerns amongst the community but, thanks to CCTV, and the courage of witnesses and the victims, we were able to arrest, charge and put them before the courts.
“There is no place for hate crime in our community. We will continue to work hard to encourage victims to come forward so we can take action against offenders.”
Anyone who finds themselves targeted for abuse because of their gender, race, religion, sexual orientation or disability should contact police at https://www.cambs.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/hco/hate-crime/what-is-hate-crime/.
