Anti-ULEZ activist jailed for 15 years after blowing up camera with improvised explosive device

Anti-ULEZ activist jailed for 15 years after blowing up camera with improvised explosive device Kevin Rees, from Sidcup in South London, was handed the especially lengthy sentence after the Met Police said a judge ruled the incident had a 'terrorism connection' An anti-ULEZ activist has been jailed for 15 years after he was found to have carried out a terrorism-linked detonation of a camera enforcing the London's low-emissions scheme. Kevin Rees, 64, detonated a powerful improvised explosive device that destroyed the camera on Willersley Avenue in Sidcup, South London, at around 6.45pm on December 6. Counter-terror police were called in to investigate after the detonation caused damage to cars and property up to 100 metres away, and shrapnel struck the outside of a child's bedroom. Investigators later identified Rees, a prolific social media user who frequently posted anti-ULEZ content, as their prime suspect behind the incident. The retired electrical appliances engineer, of Harcourt Avenue, Sidcup, was convincted in January at Woolwich Crown Court on one count of causing an explosion likely to endanger life. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Friday, with the Metropolitan Police saying the judge ruled the incident had a "terrorism connection". The connection means Rees received a tougher sentence, and will be placed under strict controls when he is released from prison. Detective Chief Superintendent James Derham, who leads local policing in the Bexley area, said it was "miraculous" no one was hurt in the explosion. Chf Supt Derham said: "It was miraculous that nobody was killed or seriously injured in the large explosion caused by Rees." "He showed a complete disregard for the welfare and safety of the people who live in, or were travelling through, the area at the time of the explosion - all because he was unhappy with the ULEZ scheme. "CCTV from a bus travelling down the road at the time shows how it narrowly missed the blast of debris by seconds." London's ULEZ scheme requires drivers to pay a daily surcharge based on how polluting the emissions from their vehicle are. While it once covered a smaller portion of the inner city to the North and South Circulars, the ULEZ now encompasses every one of the capital's 33 boroughs. Cameras are used by Transport for London (TfL) to monitor the cars that enter and exit the zone, triggering fines for motorists who have not paid the daily charge. The extension, which came into effect in February 2023, was largely welcomed by Londoners but garnered controversy, much of which was drummed up on social media. That controversy prompted a major crime wave, and the Metropolitan Police said it recorded 987 crimes relating to ULEZ cameras just five months after it was extended. Among those incidents was one that caused a road traffic accident which injured a child, police said, with pictures of others showing the cameras and the posts they were mounted on dangerously felled like trees. During the trial, Rees told the court he "strongly opposed" the ULEZ scheme - and London Mayor Lord Sadiq Khan. He said he disliked him and "what he has done to London". A jury heard the investigation team identified that Rees had travelled in his Smart car from his home in Sidcup to Shuttle Close shortly after 6.20pm on December 6, 2023. The ULEZ camera was installed earlier that day, but in an unrelated incident had been cut down by another individual, who was also identified and convicted. Rees walked the short distance from his car to the camera and then planted the device and lit a fuse, police said. He was then seen by a witness walking quickly away from the scene. Rees was identified and was arrested on December 18, 2023 and his home was searched. Detectives analysed Rees's social media activity and found he had posted numerous times about ULEZ cameras and encouraged the damaging of them, the Met said. Three homemade stun guns were found at his address. Rees was given a three-year sentence, to run concurrently, after he admitted three counts of having a prohibited weapon. During the trial, Rees denied all involvement in the incident, telling jurors he believed his arrest was linked to his participation in "anti-ULEZ" groups on Facebook. When he was arrested by counter-terror police on December 18, Rees made reference to that explosion and asked officers if his arrest had "something to do with the anti-ULEZ sites". Rees told jurors he joined "anti-ULEZ" Facebook groups and pages out of "boredom" and because it provided him with a sense of community. Bethan David, former head of the Crown Prosecution Service's counter-terrorism division, said: "This was not an act of protest or momentary vandalism. "This was a deliberate and dangerous attack involving a homemade explosive device, carried out in a residential street and designed to destroy public infrastructure. Kevin Rees knowingly and intentionally placed an explosive device next to the ULEZ camera, lit the fuse and retreated before the explosion, showing clear planning and an obvious disregard for the safety of others. "Whatever his views on the ULEZ scheme, Kevin Rees crossed a serious line by constructing a homemade bomb and detonating it in a public place." "It was pure chance that no-one suffered serious injury, or worse. The Crown Prosecution Service will always seek to prosecute dangerous offending of this nature and hopefully this conviction sends a clear message to other protesters considering taking the law into their own hands." Siwan Hayward, TfL's director of security, policing and enforcement, said: "This was a reckless and highly dangerous act that could have caused serious harm and resulted in the loss of life. "We welcome this sentencing and hope it acts as a warning to others. Tampering with or damaging TfL's property is unacceptable and seriously risks the safety of the public. Those attempting to interfere with ULEZ infrastructure show a complete disregard for the law. "All vandalised cameras are repaired or replaced as soon as possible. Any such incident on our network is reported to the police and will not stop the ULEZ operating."