WIN: Palestine protester found not guilty of criminal damage

Paula Akpan said she is “hugely relieved” after a court ruled her not guilty for her part in a Palestine protest.

“I feel like I can breathe again,” Paula said. “This process is designed to make you feel like the weight of the state is against you, simply for protesting Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people and highlighting the complicity of the UK state and financial institutions based right here under our noses”. 

Paula attended a protest outside Scotiabank on 17 June 2024, along with nine others. At the time, the bank was the largest foreign shareholder in Elbit Systems – holding a massive $500m stake in Israel’s leading weapons manufacturer, whose military hardware is directly used to target Palestinian civilians. 

To highlight the bank’s complicity in the ongoing genocide, some of the protesters sprayed blood-red paint across the entrances, while Paula locked on to a fellow protester outside the building.

The police hit all ten protesters with a group charge for criminal damage. Now, more than two years on, Paula’s name has been cleared, and seven of her co-defendants have also been acquitted.

“The last two years have been mentally gruelling for me and my loved ones,” Paula added, “but it’s one of the honours of my life to have played a part in the international pressure on Scotiabank, leading to their full divestment in Elbit Systems last year.”

For Cat Knight, Good Law Project’s lead lawyer on the case, getting this long-awaited justice for Paula is both a relief and a reminder of what’s at stake.

“This is a great result for Paula,” Knight said, “but it should never have gotten this far. The police’s response was entirely disproportionate, and it reflects a sinister crackdown on our right to protest.” 

We’ll keep standing with those who take action for Palestine – and to protect the right to protest for us all.