A father-of-three who launched an arson attack on a 5G tower after reading conspiracy theories about its supposed links to the current coronavirus pandemic has been jailed for three years.
Michael Whitty, 47, was so concerned about the potential dangers he perceived to his young children from 5G that he and two other men set fire to an equipment box next to a mast in Coopers Lane, Kirkby, Merseyside.
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The April 5 incident caused £15,000 worth of damage and rendered the mast out of action for 10 days.
Whitty, who engaged in chatroom discussions about the supposed link between 5G and coronavirus, admitted arson and was today jailed for three years at Liverpool Crown Court.
There have been 13 reported arson attacks on telecom masts on Merseyside between March 29 and April 14 this year and many more nationally causing a total of £250,000 worth of damage, the court was told.
Theories linking 5G to coronavirus have been condemned by scientists as baseless, with Public Health England explaining that there is no evidence exposure is harmful.
Whitty is believed to be the first person in Britain to be jailed for arson at a 5G tower.
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The court was told that when Whitty’s mobile phone was examined by police it revealed he had been researching theories on the internet ‘about the alleged connection between 5G and the current Coronavirus pandemic’.
His two accomplices have not been traced but fire fighters found a partly burnt glove left behind at the scene in Coopers Lane, Kirkby, and analysis revealed his DNA.
