Protester found guilty of arena bomb hoax
Aprotester has been found guilty of perpetrating a bomb hoax during a defence event at the Motorpoint Arena Cardiff.
Deidre Murphy denied two counts of communicating false information with intent but was found guilty by a jury after trial.
It took the jury of six men and six women at Cardiff Crown Court about 15 minutes to return their unanimous verdicts.
Judge Eleri Rees thanked them for their work and described the trial as “unusual”.
The court previously heard the incident occurred on March 28 when the Defence Procurement, Research, Technology and Exportability event was taking place at the city’s Motorpoint Arena.
Opening the case, prosecutor Suzanne Thomas said: “Both counts relate to bomb hoax allegations.”
She told the court that protesters gathered at the event, commonly known as the Cardiff arms fair, throughout the day.
The court heard Murphy made the first call to South Wales Police just before 10.45am from a phone box on Churchill Way.
Prosecutors played a recording of the call in court, in which the defendant could be heard crying and saying: “I think there’s a bomb in the Motorpoint Arena.”
The second call was made to MediaWales just after 11.20am from a phone box outside McDonald’s on Queen Street.
Murphy stated: “I am from Radical Action Against War. We have planted a bomb at the Motorpoint.”
The court heard the venue was searched for suspicious packages and nothing was found.
Murphy was arrested at 2.30pm and interviewed at Cardiff Bay Police Station, where she told officers: “I think you have arrested the wrong person.
“I think the people you should have arrested are the arms dealers.”
Murphy, 63, from Rhondda Street in Swansea, accepted making the phone calls, but denied the two charges against her.
In her closing speech, Murphy – who chose to represent herself – told the jury: “I am going to ask you to find me not guilty.”
She said she was opposed to the UK selling weapons to Saudi Arabia.
In her defence, she told the jury: “I believe with all my heart and mind that war crimes occurred inside the Motorpoint Arena that day.”
Murphy, who has three children, six grandchildren and one great-grandchild, said she had campaigned against war and the arms trade for many years.
She told the jury she started by writing to her MP and going to protest marches, before driving an ambulance full of medical supplies to Gaza.
The defendant said seeing children the age of her own grandchildren suffering in a conflict zone strengthened her opposition.
She asked the jury to return their verdicts according to their conscience.
Summing up, Judge Rees said: “She is entitled to have views about the sale of arms and she was entitled to engage in a peaceful and lawful demonstration.
“However, the strength of her commitment to opposing the arms trade does not entitle her to break the law.”
The judge said the jury must be sure Murphy made the calls and gave false information.
She said they must also be sure that Murphy knew the information to be false at the time and intended the person receiving the call to believe there was a real bomb in the arena.
Murphy was found guilty of two counts of communicating false information with intent.
Judge Rees asked for a pre-sentence report to be prepared before Murphy’s sentencing, which is due today.