Mother and elderly ex-serviceman who backed move to place asylum seekers in a Sussex hotel say their car windows were smashed because of their support for refugees
- Pro-refugee campaigner Emma had three windows of her silver car smashed
- John, another campaigner, said his 89-year-old father’s car was also targeted
A mother and an elderly ex-serviceman who had their car windows smashed by vandals claim they were targeted for their support of refugees.
Emma, who asked for her surname to be withheld, believes the back windows on her vehicle were smashed after she appeared in an immigration protest backing a move to place asylum seekers in a hotel in Sussex.
John, another pro-campaigner, said the car belonging his 89-year-old father, who is an ex-serviceman, was also targeted and believes he was the intended target.
The car attacks appear to have been carried out on Saturday night and Sunday night, with three windows of Emma’s Citroen C4 smashed, while the rear window of John’s father’s Volkswagen Polo also destroyed.
Shocking footage taken on Saturday night shows a hooded figure running up to one of the cars, smashing its windows with some sort of blunt object and setting off the alarm, before hastily fleeing the scene.
The back windows on Emma’s vehicle were smashed after she appeared in an immigration protest backing a move to place asylum seekers in a hotel in Sussex
The car of the father of another pro-campaigner, John, was also targeted and believes he was the intended target
The car attacks appear to have been carried out on Saturday night and Sunday night.
Emma says she saw the attack on her car being carried out from inside her home at 8:25pm on Saturday.
Three windows were smashed and the A-frame around the windscreen was damaged, with her car being declared a write off.
She said she had a boot full of donations ready to drop off at the hotel and her children’s car seats in the back – all of which were covered in glass.
She also claimed her home has also been targeted by trolls ordering expensive takeaways to her property.
Emma said: ‘It’s upsetting because we’re trying to help people, but our personal space is being violated.
‘There are people staying in the hotel who are doctors and who will be waiting for 18 months with nothing to do until they can transfer their papers over.
‘These are people who have left everything behind and want to work and be safe.
‘I luckily work from home but still rely on vehicle to drive my children around
‘This all has knock on effect. I’ve got a write off of a car now and my insurance premium has gone up.’
Shocking footage taken on Saturday night shows a hooded figure running up to one of the cars and smashing its windows with some sort of blunt object
This then sets off the alarm before the person is seen hastily fleeing the scen
The damages have meant that she has had to write off the vehicle
Emma also had her children’s car seats in the back which were covered in glass following the attack
John said he was contacted by his dad on Monday morning telling him his car’s rear windscreen had been smashed.
He says the quote for repair his father received was so high he is now considering giving up driving. Both father and son are concerned they may be targeted again.
John, who is also withholding his surname, said: ‘[My dad lives on] a quiet street, the average age on the street is quite high so the prevalence of cameras is very low.
‘The first quote for repairing the car has him thinking he might give up driving.
‘He doesn’t want to get it fixed – he thinks if he gets it fixed it will happen again.
‘Now I’m worried that my house might be targeted, or my dad will be targeted more.’
John added: ‘I just felt sick, it felt like it was targeting us because we are supportive of refugees.
‘I assume they tried finding me and couldn’t, so went after my 89-year-old ex-serviceman dad instead.
‘It’s fair to say he feels vulnerable – I’m worried – are they going to come after my house or my dad’s house?
‘[A member of the anti-refugee group] came up to me and started talking about how he likes setting things on fire.’
Emma has been forced to use a piece of clothe to patch the broken window that was left in the passenger seat of her car
The front windscreen was also significantly damaged by the vandal, making it impossible to drive on the road
Shards of glass can be seen lying on the driveway of John’s father’s house after the attack
Plans to use the Chichester Park Hotel in Chichester for asylum seekers were revealed earlier this year.
The three star hotel announced it would close on Monday September 25 and would be taken over by a third-party company to house long-term residents.
The sudden closure meant that hundreds of events including weddings and Christmas parties were cancelled on short notice.
Protests later took place outside the venue with locals on one side arguing that all British homeless people and veterans should be housed before refugees are allowed into the country.
Others, including Emma, from Chichester Welcomes Refugees say they want to provide a safe space for the asylum seekers.
She said: ‘I’m still closely working with refugees to ensure we can still get donations to them.
‘It’s been really stressful, we’re really lucky because we have a united cause, everyone leans on one another – everyone has helped me get my children to school this week.
‘They say refugees will cause crime but the only ones causing crime has been this anti-refugee group, it’s horrific and really frightening.’
A Home Office spokesperson said: ‘The number of people arriving in small boats is down compared with last year but we must go further to stop the boats in the first place.
‘That is why we are determined, through the Illegal Migration Act, to ensure that anyone arriving in the UK illegally is detained and swiftly removed to their country of origin or a safe third country.
‘We are also working hard to reduce the unacceptable use of hotels by moving asylum seekers into alternative accommodation, doubling them up in hotel rooms, and clearing the legacy backlog.’
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