Woman receives community order for police car damage during Cardiff unrest

A 53-year-old woman has been issued an 18-month community order after causing damage to a police vehicle during civil disturbances in Cardiff in 2023. Janine Reffell was not charged with participation in the riots in the Ely area, but was observed verbally abusing officers at one of the cordons on the evening of 22 May, 2023, before damaging a police car. The disorder escalated following the deaths of friends Kyrees Sullivan, 16, and Harvey Evans, 15, whose electric bike crashed minutes after South Wales Police officers had been following the boys. Reffell informed Cardiff Magistrates’ Court that she was remorseful for her actions. A 17-year-old boy, whose identity cannot be disclosed for legal reasons, was also sentenced in connection with the riots. The court heard that Reffell, from Ely, had been drinking that night and arrived at the cordon on Wilson Road just before 23:00, when the riots were occurring on neighbouring Stanway Road. Alex Orndal, prosecuting, stated that the 53-year-old was among approximately half a dozen people along the cordon and “was shouting at the officers,” calling them killers, expressing a wish that they “burn to death” and “should be put down.” During the disorder, Reffell held a “bottle of alcohol in her hand,” with body worn footage showing her leaning over the rear windscreen of an already damaged police car and repeatedly striking the bottle against it until it smashed. The Peugeot 308 was estimated to have a value of £4,900. Nathan Jones, defending Reffell, stated that she was “remorseful for her actions” and “appreciates how serious it is,” having pleaded guilty at the first opportunity. He added that she was “mortified” upon hearing the language she used on that night. District Judge Stephen Harmes requested her to stand before delivering her sentence, remarking: “Ely’s reputation has been blackened,” and although it was clearly an “emotion-filled day,” that “doesn’t excuse any of the behaviour.” Reffell was given an 18-month community order for criminal damage and ordered to pay a total of £744 in compensation and charges. A 17-year-old boy was also sentenced in the youth court, having pleaded guilty to making threats to cause criminal damage. The court heard that the boy, who was 16 at the time, was at a cordon on Stanway Road, on the opposite side of the street to where the disorder was taking place, when he began making threats at officers. Cycling around the crowds on a bike, the boy told officers that “Ely police station is going up in flames” and that he would be “smashing three of those vans tonight.” District Judge Stephen Harmes stated that he acknowledged the boy had pleaded guilty and that since entering the criminal justice system, it had been revealed that he was a victim of trafficking, which made him a vulnerable person at the time. The judge also commended the work done by the youth offending service, saying that he “needed to realise what he had done is wrong” but “didn’t intend to throw his future away,” issuing a referral order for nine months.