Two men charged in relation to Southampton disorder
The Crown Prosecution Service has announced that two men have been charged following disorder in Southampton on Tuesday evening.
Matt Styler, 50, has been charged with assaulting a police officer (assault of an emergency worker), and Daniel Frost, 44, has been charged with violent disorder and possession of an offensive weapon. They will appear at Southampton Magistrates’ Court on Thursday June 4.
Sophie Stevens, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor for CPS Wessex, said: “We have decided to prosecute Matt Styler with assault of an emergency worker. Later our out of hours team CPS Direct also directed that Daniel Frost was charged with violent disorder and possession of an offensive weapon – this followed an investigation into alleged offending following protests held in Southampton on Tuesday evening.
“Our prosecutors have worked to establish that there is sufficient evidence to bring the case to court and that it is in the public interest to pursue criminal proceedings.
“We have worked closely with Hampshire police as it has carried out its investigation.”
We remind all concerned that criminal proceedings against both defendants are active and that they have the right to a fair trial.
It is vital that there should be no reporting, commentary or sharing of information online which could in any way prejudice these proceedings.
Notes to editors
- Matt Styler [DOB 10/03/1979] is of no fixed address.
- Daniel Frost [DOB 17/11/1981]
- Charges brought against Daniel Frost were authorised by lawyers in CPS Direct, the out of hours team in the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), to ensure suspects are charged swiftly and appeared in court as soon as possible.
- The function of the CPS is not to decide whether a person is guilty of a criminal offence, but to make fair, independent and objective assessments about whether it is appropriate to present charges for a criminal court to consider.
- The CPS assessment of any case is not in any sense a finding of, or implication of, any guilt or criminal conduct. It is not a finding of fact, which can only be made by a court, but rather an assessment of what it might be possible to prove to a court, in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors.