Two men have received criminal records and fines totalling £1,240 after being convicted of singing an anti-Semitic song on a train.
The two West Ham fans, Richard Prendiville and R. Peacock were both convicted at Northampton Magistrates’ Court on 2nd March, the Campaign Against Antisemitism reports.
They were prosecuted under the Crime and Disorder Act of racially aggravated harassment alarm and distress for singing anti-Semitic football songs on a train. The case against a third man was dropped.
Prendeville was fined £220 and ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £23 plus £350 costs, whilst Peacock was fined £270 and ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £27 and £350 costs.
The men were among a group of five West Ham fans on a train who started chanting anti-Semitic songs after a Jewish man boarded the train. The man was offended and asked them to stop, but the men continued.
Witnesses came forward after the incident and in October last year British Transport Police issued CCTV images of the men, which were widely circulated online. The men were identified and later charged.
CCTV images of five West Ham fans issued by British Transport Police in October 2015
At the time of the CCTV images being released, PC Michael Botterill made a statement saying, “This sort of casual racism has gone unchallenged for too long. We know the vast majority of football fans are decent people, but for those who continue to make life unpleasant for the travelling public, our message is clear: we will not tolerate your yobbish behaviour.”
West Ham football club also said that any fans found guilty of antisemitic abuse could face a lifetime ban from its ground.
