A university of York student is set to face jail or severe prosecution after setting off a prank fire alarm in Mansion that cost the nightclub thousands of pounds.
The student is said to have set off the alarm by intentionally shattering one of the fire alarm’s break glass points. Mansion claims they have clear CCTV footage of the incident and have worked with North Yorkshire police to get further identification of the culprit through an official police camera situated outside the club.
“We have worked with the police to get enough evidence so that they can hopefully prosecute the culprit,” club manager Ed Gallagher told Vision.
Mansion has worked with the police to compile what they believe is enough evidence to successfully prosecute the student. The case is currently in the hands of North Yorkshire police, but Mansion hopes the case will be under way in the next coming weeks. “It’s in the hands of the police now,” Gallagher told Vision.
“We are hoping to get the student under new legislation created after the terrorism attacks which punishes causing terror in a public place. We are hoping that by prosecuting him under this new law he will have to give us lots and lots of money,” claimed Gallagher after the incident.
This the second unecessary evacuation on Mansion’s ‘Ziggy’s Wednesday’ night.
Ziggy’s is the club’s most profitable night and the most recent evacuation cost the club £3,000, a fifth of their weekly profit.
Given that the case is not yet underway, Mansion and North Yorkshire police were unable to give us the identity of the culprit. “For legal reasons I can’t tell you who set off the alarm until after the case is underway” the club manager told Vision.
YUSU has been more than willing to help Mansion with the case. However, Vision has been informed that despite contacting the club to offer their assistance, the club staff failed to get back to them. “We were in contact with Mansion initially after the incident however they haven’t gotten in contact with us since,” Asfahani revealed.
Bob Hughes, YUSU’s Welfare Officer, told Vision that while he couldn’t comment on any individual case, that generally “If a student has been charged with an offence and comes to YUSU, we will provide non-judgemental general support in the sense of listening, passing on the details of solicitors and giving information about Open Door, mitigating circumstances and other support available to the student.”
YUSU is under obligation to ‘promote and defend the general interests of its members and represent them in matters affecting their interest’ under section 3.14 of the Union’s constitution.