A protester who threw ‘at least five eggs’ and shouted abuse at King Charles, accusing him of being friends with pedophile Jimmy Savile has been found guilty of threatening behaviour.
Patrick Thelwell, 23, a university student, was arrested by police in the crowd last November as bystanders rushed to protect the King and his wife, the Queen Consort, during a visit to York.
Prosecutor Michael Smith told the York Magistrates Court that the eggs ‘passed’ the king and narrowly missed him.
At court, Thelwell gasped with relief when he was told he had evaded custody. He was discharged with community service, which required unpaid work.
Senior District Judge Paul Goldspring announced the sentencing, saying people “could have been harmed by the eggs,” but told him, “I’ll put your mind at ease. I’m not going to send you to prison.’
Patrick Thelwell (pictured outside York Magistrates’ Court) found guilty of threatening behavior after throwing eggs at King Charles
Court heard Thelwell shout ‘King Charles is a paedophile’ as he threw five eggs at the new monarch
Footage captured the moment the eggs flew past King Charles as he was greeted by city leaders in central York last year
During the incident, Thelwell yelled obscenities as he hurled the eggs and the police arrested him.
Mr Smith said he called out ‘pedophile’, ‘King Charles is a pedophile’ and ‘friends with Jimmy Savile’.
The court ruled that Thelwell had ‘attacked the King the day before’ and ‘intended his behavior as threatening’.
The judge also ruled that the student intended to induce King Charles and others to immediately use unlawful force against him and others.
He said: ‘The defendant had attempted to characterize egg-throwing as non-violent. His behavior went beyond what would be considered reasonable. He accepts that the violence was low level.
Sentencing was delayed for a short time to allow Thelwell to discuss with a probation officer what work he could do.
Thewell has two prior convictions, the first in 2019, for failing to comply with terms imposed at a public meeting.
Thelwell, a student at York University, represents himself in court
He received a 12-month conditional discharge over the incident imposed at an Extinction Rebellion demo near Marble Arch.
The offense also occurred during a two-year conditional discharge issued in May 2021 for a protest outside a printing works at News International in Knowsley, Liverpool on Merseyside.
Extinction Rebellion protesters claimed that the newspapers were not publishing the truth about climate change.
He glued himself to the roof of a van blocking the road before freeing himself in September 2020.
He was convicted of obstructing the highway and admitted to violating the two-year parole.
During the current trial, police CCTV and bodycam footage played in court, showing the egg-throwing incident and its aftermath.
The court heard Thelwell was heard to say, “I threw eggs at him because he deserved it.” It’s the only justice the victims of colonialization will ever get.’
Add: ‘Do I have it? I didn’t get it. Someone will get him.’
Plainclothes officers in the crowd were the first to grab hold of the demonstrators before uniformed police also arrived, the court heard.
Thelwell was handcuffed and arrested by officers.
A sixth unbroken egg later fell out of his pocket before being driven to the police station.
When questioned by police, he declined to comment.
Thelwell denied a public policy violation of using threats, words or conduct
PC Adam Steventon, who arrested Thelwell, said he shouted ‘f*** the King’ and so he put his hand over his mouth to silence him as families were close by and upset by what the protester said .
He said people were “angry” about what happened. “There were a lot of angry people there. A gentleman said, “You ruined this for everyone.”‘
When he was taken from his cell at the police station, an officer made comments about the high heel of Thelwell’s shoes.
Thelwell replied, “I know it is so I can see him through the crowd,” and made a throwing gesture, Mr. Smith said.
Thelwell commented that it was “a joke.”
In his defense, Thelwell told senior district judge Paul Goldspring that he acted “out of necessity” and did not commit unlawful force.
“The violence I was accused of is throwing an egg,” he said.
“If that amounts to unlawful violence, then the violence of the British state is of such a serious degree that I cannot be held responsible for my crime as long as the crimes of the British state go unpunished.”
Thelwell, representing himself in court, asked PC Steventon during cross-examination if he had seen the mob pulling his hair and shouting ‘to kill him’ and ‘to put his head on his nail’.
The officer replied, “No.”
Demonstrators outside York Magistrates’ Court, where Patrick Thelwell was found guilty of threatening behaviour
He also claimed that the officer repeatedly pushed his head into the ground, but the officer denied this, adding, “Everything we did to you was done with absolutely minimal force.”
After watching video of the incident, PC Steventon added, “I put my hand on his head as he was shouting these obscenities, but I don’t think anyone would say I did this with any degree of violence.”
Thelwell claimed his actions against the king were ‘lawful force’ and he did not resist his arrest.
Thelwell, who is doing a masters degree in international relations, gave a speech to the court about the ‘obscenity of the monarch flaunting their wealth and power in the city of York’.
Thelwell said that “millions of people” agreed that “my actions were just, moral and necessary.”
He claimed that the British state was committing “tyrannical state violence” and “crimes against humanity” through its economic and climate policies.
He also criticized the government’s policy of cracking down on illegal immigration, claiming that the UK was “setting up concentration camps” domestically and in Rwanda.
Questioned by the district judge, he admitted to throwing the five eggs at the king, accusing him of being a “paedophile.”
He also admitted to committing “minor violence.”
Thelwell denied a public policy violation of using threats, words or conduct.
