Harry Potter star jailed for 2 years over London riot violence

PanARMENIAN.Net - A star of the Harry Potter films was sentenced to two years in prison for being part of a violent mob which took to the streets during last summer's riots in London, UKPA reported.

Jamie Waylett, 22, who played Hogwarts bully Vincent Crabbe in six of the films, was found guilty of violent disorder by a jury at London's Wood Green Crown Court.

The actor, who had already admitted swigging from a stolen bottle of Champagne during the rioting, was cleared of intending to destroy or damage property with a petrol bomb he was pictured holding.

Waylett, of Hillfield Road, north-west London, was with a gang of at least four people who went into Chalk Farm on August 8, the third night of violence in the capital.

Waylett, who already has a previous conviction for cannabis possession, was captured on CCTV at various points during the evening, often with his hood over his head. The footage shows him accepting a bottle of champagne from a rioter who had just looted the supermarket he was standing outside.

Judge Simon Carr sentenced the actor to two years for violent disorder and 12 months for handling stolen goods, to run concurrently, adding that Waylett would be eligible for release after a year in jail.

Waylett's defence lawyer, Emily Dummatt, said earlier her client had become a "withered actor by the age of 22". She said Waylett, who has three low-grade GCSEs and a qualification in painting and decorating, had struggled with his fame and began to use cannabis.