Muggers get 18 months in jail for violently stealing rainbow flag from Pride reveler

Two people accused of robbing a victim during a 2022 Pride celebration in Wales have been sentenced to 18 months in prison.

ITV News reports that 22-year-old Callum Lewis and 28-year-old Melanie Shaw pleaded guilty to robbery, with Lewis also pleading guilty to two counts of fraud, in connection with the August 28, 2022, attack on an unnamed victim during Cardiff Pride.

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The incident occurred around 3:30am in the Welsh capital’s city center. CCTV footage reportedly showed the victim wearing a rainbow flag around their shoulders talking to Lewis and a third person before Shaw approached them. Shaw then reportedly pushed the victim to the ground and snatched the flag. The victim was pushed to the ground repeatedly as they tried to get the flag back, before being dragged across the ground.

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The victim then offered Lewis and Shaw their wallet to get the attackers to leave them alone. Lewis also demanded the victim’s pin number, which the court was told the victim gave out of fear.

The victim was then helped home by a friend and later discovered several charges on their card made at McDonald’s.

The victim told the court that the attack had left them afraid to leave the house alone after dark and that they had experienced heightened anxiety, panic attacks, and trouble sleeping in the aftermath.

“I am thinking about things and what has happened to me and I’m constantly worrying,” they said. “This incident made me feel so overwhelmed and I didn’t know how to cope. I had a Pride flag with me and looking at it was a constant reminder and made me feel unsafe in my own room.”

“I am also worried about friends, family, and my partner,” they added. “I am worried something might happen to them similar to what happened to me.”

The judge in the case said there was no suggestion the robbery was motivated by homophobia, according to ITV.