A Tweet from Sussex Police, 22 December:
#GatwickDrones | Around 10pm today we made 2 arrests in connection with criminal drone activity at Gatwick Airport. Proactive investigations are still on-going: we urge the public to contact us if they believe they have information that can aid us further.
I discussed the arrests and the media response here. As everyone knows, the couple were released 36 hours later, and they are no longer suspects.
I return to the Tweet today in order to note some of the more than 350 replies that the announcement of the arrest elicited. Although a few voices urged caution, the overwhelming view prior to the couple being released was that the police deserved to be congratulated for having caught the culprits, and that the couple ought to be subjected to severe penalties – not just long prison terms after conviction, but also being brought to the airport at once to face angry travellers. One person Tweeted an image of a noose, while another hinted that the public would welcome police brutality against the suspects.
It was also suggested that if the matter were dropped without going to court, this would be indicative that the CPS is not doing its job properly, and that there is “no justice anymore”.
I include some examples below.
Rather than charging them & involving the courts at Christmas could you not bring them loudly into the departure halls & leave them there. I’m sure they’d be dealt with sympathetically 🙈🙊😂
Now charge them for every single penny this disruption caused. You got to wonder what actually goes through people heads sometimes, sit them in a room with that kid that was on tv who was going to Lapland and let them explain to him why they did it.
Absolutely throw the book at them, no other way to deter people from doing this again. Whatever their reasons they have brought misery to families, old and young!
Do grown up crime then they need to do serious grown up time. 5 years is not enough a detterent. That needs doubling, they have ruined so many dream trips, holidays, trips for deeply personal situations – family funerals etc. Untold financial cost !
Good. Now make them pay for all the chaos they’ve caused.
Excellent work 👏🏻 Best wishes for Christmas and New Year, especially for those working over the holiday period.
Wasn’t it a local passer by that saw them and alerted the authorities? Well done police for arresting them but the person that reported them is the real hero here!! Name and shame the irresponsible imbeciles and let nature take its course….
You’ve done all that, now see if the CPS will back you up with taking action and if they do, the Court handing out the appropriate sentence.
British Armed Forces and Police working in unison =job done
Good job. Now let’s hope the @cpsuk do a proper job of prosecuting. It’d be even better if the airport and disrupted passengers lined up to sue them into oblivion. That might make others think twice.
Great news well done #sussexpolice I don’t think there’d be too much concern if they were to “fall over” in their cells.
2 arrests but I guarantee nothing will will happen to them. No justice anymore
@cpsuk Please throw the book at these bastards. They should get maximum time for every plane they disrupted plus sued by every airline and person affected.
Etc., etc…
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