Grandad dies in prison two months after being jailed for taking part in riots

A grandfather jailed for violent disorder and abusing police at one of the riots held this summer in the UK has died in prison.

Peter Lynch, 61, died on Saturday night, October 19.

He was serving his sentence at HMP Moorland near Doncaster, in South Yorkshire.

His death in jail will now be investigated by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman.

A prison service spokesman said: “HMP Moorland prisoner Peter Lynch died on Oct 19 2024. As with all deaths in custody, the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman will investigate.”

Lynch, who had recently suffered a heart attack, was handed a sentence of two years and eight months on August 22.

The man, who had taken part in one of the riots held across the UK in light of the Southport stabbings, had pleaded guilty to violent disorder during a hearing in Sheffield Crown Court.

Lynch, a grandfather described as a “family man” by his defence barrister during the hearing in August, headed on August 4 to the Holiday Inn Express in Manvers, Rotherham, the court heard.

He carried a placard, which was not deemed unlawful, calling police officers, MPs and the media “corrupt”.

The man, described as a conspiracy theorist during his court hearing, shouted “racist and provocative remarks” towards police officers, the Recorder of Sheffield, Judge Jeremy Richardson KC, told the court during his sentencing.

The 61-year-old man also called asylum seekers housed in a hotel “child killers”.

The Recorder also said Lynch, of Burman Road, Wath-upon-Dearne, was a “full participant” in the disorder.