Protest Organiser Fined for Police Abuse
Connor Graham, 28, who led a group organising prolonged anti-immigration protests outside a hotel accommodating asylum seekers, has been fined for verbally abusing a police officer.
Graham admitted to a breach of the peace following an incident on 6 December outside the Hotel Cladhan in Falkirk.
He was previously the organiser of Save Our Futures and Our Kids' Futures (SOF), a group he stated in January had been disbanded.
"It's you who seem to be a risk to the local community, rather than individuals residing in this hotel,"said Sheriff William Gilchrist when imposing a £540 fine on Graham.
Outside the court, Graham described the sheriff's remarks as
"outrageous"and asserted he was an
"upstanding member of this community."
He further commented,
"If anybody commits a crime they should be able to deal with the punishment. I did make a mistake on that day by calling the officer what I called him."
Court Details of Incident
At Falkirk Sheriff Court, it was revealed that Graham admitted to acting aggressively, shouting, swearing, and making threatening and derogatory remarks to PC Nathan Wilson while the officer was on duty.
One of the remarks reportedly included a disablist slur directed at the officer.
Graham pleaded not guilty to a second charge alleging he attempted to incite violence; this plea was accepted by the court.
The court heard that the Hotel Cladhan is used by the Home Office to house asylum seekers.
Graham, who works as a roofer, was said to have
"lost his temper"after police formed a cordon to keep SOF protesters away from the hotel.
He believed a counter-protester from an anti-fascist group, whom he claimed had been abusing him online, was allowed past the cordon.
Prosecutor Karen Chambers explained that a police officer on public order duty perceived Graham was attempting to pass through a gap in the cordon and pulled him back to prevent this.
Following this, Graham became aggressive and shouted abusive remarks at the officer.
He later admitted to police,
"My hands are up, I'm guilty of that. I know it happened, ultimately I shouldn't have done it."
Defence and Background
Defence solicitor Simon Hutchison stated that Graham initiated the protests in summer 2025.
Hutchison said,
"He had sincerely-held beliefs in relation to deficiencies in community safety and most importantly problems caused by unchecked immigration and crimes caused by some of these people. He helped by peaceful protests to bring these concerns to the public."
He added that Graham disbanded the protest group after the Cladhan protests were
"hijacked by the far right."
Hutchison acknowledged that Graham had
"stupidly lost his temper"after being pushed back by the police officer and expressed that
"He is very, very sorry."
The court was informed that Graham has previous convictions, including dangerous driving and driving while disqualified.
Sentencing Remarks
When imposing the fine, Sheriff Gilchrist remarked,
"It's somewhat ironic that your claimed motivation for being there was concern about public safety – the irony being that you have a very extensive record yourself."
