Four more people sentenced for Bristol riots including man who tried to set fire to police van

A man who tried to set a police vehicle on fire during the Bristol riots is among four more people to have been sentenced.

Rokas Barisauskas, Daniel Ellis, Carmen Fitchett and Leah Brenchley were all sentenced at Bristol Crown Court yesterday (12 May).

Barisauskas admitted charges of riot and arson and was jailed for six years.

The 21-year-old kicked and poured drinks over officers and posed for selfies with them while calling them offensive names.

He also attacked a mobile police station with a shield, causing damage to the vehicle as well as two other police cars with officers inside.

At the peak of the violence in March 2021, he also tried to set a police van with officers inside, on fire.

• Footage of Rokas Barisauskas during the riots. Credit: Avon and Somerset Police.

Daniel Ellis, 27, admitted charges of riot and arson. He was jailed for four years and six months.

Ellis was described as a "catalyst" for the disorder and was caught on camera kicking out at officers and using a police shield to ram into them.

He also helped to set fire to a mobile police van, which was destroyed.

Carmen Fitchett admitted a charge of affray and was given a 10-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months.

She will also be subject to a curfew between 5pm and 5am for two months and will have to carry out 180 hours of unpaid work.

The 24-year-old was abusive to officers, became involved in scuffles and threw objects at Bridewell police station.

Leah Brenchley, 22, admitted charges of assaulting an emergency worker and criminal damage and was sentenced to two months in prison, suspended for nine months.

She will also be subject to a curfew between 5pm and 5am for two months and undergo 15 days of rehabilitation.

During the riot, she pushed and barged into officers and daubed graffiti over bus shelters, bins and a police vehicle.

• Daniel Ellis was caught on camera during the riots. Credit: Avon and Somerset Police.

So far, 34 people have been jailed for offences committed during the riot. Together, they have been imprisoned for a combined total of 109 years and four months.

Det Supt James Riccio said: “The fact the courts have now given out prison sentences amounting to more than 100 years shows the gravity of offences committed on that shameful evening. To say the riot is a stain on the history of Bristol is no understatement. “The actions of the minority who engaged in the violence were wholly unacceptable. Our communities do not want to see wanton disorder on the streets, so it’s right those who freely chose to act in this way now face the consequences of their actions. “Rokas Barisauskas and Daniel Ellis were involved in some of the most serious violence which occurred on the night, and both used what’s previously been described as the ‘uncontrollable weapon of fire’ to cause maximum damage.

"The fact Barisauskas was willing to try and set a vehicle ablaze while people were inside beggars’ belief."

Avon and Somerset Police are still trying to identify 21 people in connection with the riot investigations.

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