BNP ‘cashing in’ on Da Vinci rapist row as Nick Griffin plans to join protestors

Members of the far-right party are due to meet at the Adventure Playground in Dalkeith before heading to the town centre where they will stage a demonstration against Greens being rehoused near to where he raped a Dutch 
student in 2005.

More than 50 members are expected to attend the rally.

BNP Scotland’s national organiser David Orr said: “I phoned Nick about the Robert Greens protest and he agreed that it was disgusting that this guy has been rehoused back in the community. He straight away agreed to come and support the people of Midlothian.

“The BNP is against any sex offender being rehoused in the community regardless of race or ethnicity, they don’t deserve to get out of jail or even breathe again.”

The far-right group has been accused of attempting to hijack and politicise the protest against Greens, with members of its affiliate the Scottish Defence League seen in attendance at the recent protest outside Midlothian Council offices in Dalkeith.

A spokesperson for the Edinburgh Anti-Fascist Alliance said: “Nick Griffin is putting in an appearance in an attempt to cash-in on the local protests against Robert Greens. Local BNP activists have been infiltrating the protests – pictures can be seen of known fascists holding placards with the Pro Fam logo, which is a BNP front group.”

The Get Robert Greens Out of Midlothian campaign which has more than 14,000 supporters has been quick to distance itself from any fascist links with the Scottish Defence League and BNP.

Protest leader Kelly Parry said: “We were donated those placards and accepted them in good faith. These guys just turned up at the protest and began handing them out. They just read “Pro Fam: Protecting the Family”, nobody had a clue as to their political connotations. In actual fact we turned away a number of people who arrived wearing BNP T-shirts.

“As a campaign we do not support or condone the views of the SDL or BNP in any way, in fact we strongly oppose their views.”

The BNP’s own trenchant law and order and anti-sex offender stance has been compromised of late by several instances of its own members’ offences. Rhyl BNP organiser, Ian Si’ree, was convicted in June of making and possessing 138 illegal images of child sex abuse.

Meanwhile Lancashire member, Nigel Hesmondhalgh, was imprisoned for nine months after a series of degrading photos and videos of children were found on his home computer in 2011.

In 2010 Northampton BNP activist Darren Francis was jailed for a sexual relationship with a 13-year-old girl. He was described by police as “every parents’ worst nightmare”.

When asked to comment on this, David Orr, said: “Like I said before whether you are a member of the BNP or not, if you commit any type of sex offence you do not deserve to get out of jail or even breathe again.”

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