Elham Asaad Buaras
A 56-year-old man has appeared in court charged with incitement to hatred in connection with a model of a mosque placed on top of a traditional bonfire in Moygashel, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland.
Brian Conrad Neill, of Hollow Mills, New Mills, near Dungannon, was charged on July 9 and appeared before Dungannon Magistrates’ Court on July 10, where he spoke only to confirm his name and the charge.
The court heard that on July 8, police monitoring the area around the bonfire saw crowds gathered at the site and several men at the top of the structure, where a mosque-like display and accompanying signs were being installed.
A detective told the court there was “one male not wearing a face covering”. She said he was assisting two other men with signs before “there was an unveiling” and “all males made their way to the bottom of the bonfire”.
The court heard that police later stopped a vehicle and identified Neill. Officers also recovered what were described as “yellow and foam like gloves”.
Neill’s defence lawyer said his client “claims he climbed down the bonfire before the top of the signs were removed”. He told the court that, although Neill saw the signs, “he didn’t read what was on them”.
The court also heard that during police interview Neill said he had gone to the bonfire with friends and a couple of cans of cider. He said two masked men had approached him and asked him to repair the structure at the top of the bonfire because he was a trained tree surgeon.
Police opposed bail, with the detective telling the court that “Mr Neill was likely to commit further offences”. She said officers believed he was “very influential in the area” and “influential within an organised group of people, likely to be influenced to commit public disorder”. Refusing bail, the judge said, “This man is asking the court to believe he went to Moygashel with friends and happened upon this incident.”
Describing the Moygashel bonfire as “notorious”, the judge said that if he had been asked by any reasonable person to help with the bonfire, “I would recoil in horror”. He added that any reasonable person would know what was likely to be behind the covering and remarked: “Needless to say, Moygashel bonfire has become notorious.”
The judge also said, “They don’t need tree surgeons,” noting that those responsible had been building the bonfire in previous years.
Neill was remanded in custody and is due to appear before the court again on August 5. The charge has not yet been tested in court.
