Three men have been jailed for a total of more than six years after committing violent disorder in Epping while officers had tried to facilitate a peaceful protest outside The Bell Hotel.
Each of the men had been seen on body worn video acting violently during disorder which had broken out following a peaceful protest outside the hotel, which housed asylum seekers, on July 17.
Martin Peagram, 33, of Barfields, Loughton, was captured on video kicking a police carrier door and throwing an object at another carrier.
Dean Smith, 51, of Madells, Epping, and Williams, 26, of Duck Lane, Thornwood, had been seen to be behaving aggressively and violently, including towards police officers.
Stuart Williams was also seen to have climbed on the roofs of the hotel and a nearby school which had reported damage to a door which led to the roof.
All three men were identified through footage and arrested in the days following the disorder. Each of the men were subsequently charged with violent disorder.
They admitted their offences at an earlier hearing and were sentenced to immediate custody today at Chelmsford Crown Court.
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Smith was given one year and ten months, Peagram two years and two months, and Williams two years and four months.
Chief Superintendent Simon Anslow said: “There can never be an excuse for the actions of these three men on 17 July. Officers had been trying their utmost to fulfil our lawful duty, which is to facilitate protest and counter-protest, and these men were among a section of the crowd which was intent on escalating a peaceful protest into dangerous violence.
“At Essex Police, we are in no way anti-protest, quite the contrary. We want people to be able to do this peacefully and safely. We’ve worked incredibly hard to ensure that can take place over the last three months.
“In these past weeks in Epping, we’ve seen what peaceful protest looks like, which balances the right to protest with the rights of the Epping community to live their lives free of serious disruption.”
Ch Supt Anslow added: “What we are opposed to is crime and we cannot and will not tolerate any kind of violence. We can’t have a situation where people are assaulting police officers, causing damage to property and vehicles or forcing us to close roads, all of which massively impacts local people.
“As today’s sentencing hearing shows, we will deal robustly with people who do that and ultimately put them before the courts.”
Anti-migrant protests
The Bell Hotel protests in Epping, Essex, erupted in July 2025 outside a hotel used by the Home Office to house around 140 single male asylum seekers since 2020.
The demonstrations, which drew hundreds to thousands of participants over multiple weekends, were triggered by the arrest and charging of Hadush Kebatu, a 41-year-old Ethiopian asylum seeker resident at the hotel, with multiple sexual offenses against a 14-year-old girl in early July.
Kebatu was later convicted on five counts in September 2025.
Protests began peacefully on July 13, with locals voicing concerns over the hotel’s location near schools and a cricket club, perceived increases in antisocial behaviour, and the suitability of housing single men in a residential area.
However, they escalated into violence on subsequent dates, including July 17 and 20, with protesters throwing eggs, fireworks, and missiles at police and the hotel; smashing police vehicles; and assaulting officers (eight injured in one clash).
Counter-protests by anti-racism groups like Stand Up to Racism drew smaller crowds but faced hostility, including physical attacks.
Essex Police made over 17 arrests for offenses like violent disorder and affray, with at least 10 charged.
Separate incidents included a racially aggravated assault on two Black and Asian security guards at a bus stop (treated as a hate crime) and an individual shouting racial abuse while damaging the hotel.
Epping Forest District Council, local MPs, and protesters demanded the hotel’s closure as unsuitable, citing safety risks and lack of consultation with authorities.
The council secured a temporary High Court injunction in August to block asylum use, but the Court of Appeal overturned it later that month, delaying resolution until a full hearing in October 2025; asylum seekers remain housed there amid ongoing smaller protests.
Police data showed no significant crime spike linked to the hotel, with violent offenses in Epping slightly lower than pre-2020 levels.
While some participants framed their actions as protecting children and communities from specific crimes (e.g., via slogans like “Protect our kids”), far-right activists from groups like the British Democrats and Homeland Party infiltrated and organised events, promoting anti-migrant rhetoric since 2020.
Reports documented racist abuse toward non-white hotel staff and asylum seekers, chases through streets, and far-right figures (e.g., a councillor advocating for a “whites-only” Epping) exploiting the situation to incite hatred.
Anti-racism groups and analysts described the unrest as far-right opportunism blending legitimate local grievances with xenophobic violence, echoing broader UK anti-migrant flashpoints.
