Four charged over racial harassment on Bristol estate

Two men and two boys have appeared in court after a TV programme which showed undercover reporters being racially abused in Southmead.

Sean Ganderton, 22, and Martin Durnell, 18, appeared before magistrates charged with racially aggravated harassment. The boys, 11, appeared in the youth court charged with attempted robbery.

One of them faces two further counts of attempted robbery and one count of racially aggravated harassment. During the summer reporters Tamanna Rahman and Amil Khan spent eight weeks, filming for the BBC’s Panorama. During that time they became the victims of attempted muggings, were called “the most offensive racial insults” and had waterbombs, glass and rocks thrown at them.

Ganderton and Durnell did not enter a plea and were granted unconditional bail and will appear in court again on April 8.

This is Bristol, 12 February 2010