A judge criticized parliamentary security officers when an inebriated schizophrenic with paranoid delusions stormed into the Palace of Westminster and caused £900 in damages.
After security personnel failed to stop the 90-minute rampage, Judge David Evans stated, “Their Lordships may wish to bring this to the attention of those in charge.”
Jake Pottle, age 27 and a resident of Exeter, admits to breaking into the premises early on August 25, 2021.
Pottle entered the offices of the House of Lords in Old Palace Gate, which is located between the Palace of Westminster and Westminster Abbey.
Jake Pottle, 27, smashed two windows to gain access to the legislative offices at 3 a.m., but security personnel did not intervene because they believed he was “simply a staff member.” Pottle will pay £900 for the damage his drunken rampage caused.
On Wednesday, the Exeter Crown Court was informed that CCTV footage captured a drunken Pottle shattering two windows at 3 a.m. as he attempted to break into the premises.
He then wandered into many workplaces while wearing a suit and drinking champagne, leaving a bloody trail behind him.
During his 90-minute search of the building, the intruder broke door frames and a picture frame before departing Parliament Square at 5am.
Pottle, who suffers from paranoid schizophrenia, triggered many alarms in the offices of the House of Lords, but security personnel did not intervene because they believed it was a member of staff.
The 27-year-old was later arrested, but remained silent during two conversations with police.
Judge David Evans called the scenario “exceptional” and criticized the staff for not intervening sooner.
The judge stated that the ‘bigger scandal’ was that someone was inside these Parliamentary offices for one and a half hours setting multiple alarms while no Parliamentary security personnel entered the building.
The court heard that the 27-year-old smashed two windows to enter the Parliamentary offices at 3 a.m. last August. Pottle, who has paranoid schizophrenia and lives in sheltered housing, was given a one-year community order and ordered to pay £900 for the damage he did.
According to him, Pottle spent a considerable lot of time in the building acting bizarrely.
Judge Evans said that Pottle was not in the office because it was a parliamentary office, but because he was intoxicated.
According to reports, Pottle’s mental state had recently deteriorated following a loss.
The decision to have the case heard in a Crown Court as opposed to a lower magistrates court was also criticized by Judge Evans.
He stated, “It is an enormous waste of time and taxpayer funds.”
Pottle was sentenced to a one-year community order with 20 days of rehabilitation and £900 in restitution for the damage he did to the historic structure.