HMS Queen Elizabeth: Police reveal why six British sailors were arrested

Police documents have revealed what happened the night six '˜drunk' British sailors from the Fife-built HMS Queen Elizabeth were arrested in Florida.
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Arrest reports, obtained by The Scotsman’s sister title The Portsmouth News have named the group of male sailors, who are aged between 19 and 28 years old, and details that led to the arrests of the six sailors from the £3.1bn aircraft carrier in Jacksonville, Florida on Thursday.

Both Ieuan Lemuel Edwards, 21, and Thomas Inigo Reffold, 28, were tasered by police due to resisting arrest. Reffold, from Gosport, was seen ‘yelling and pushing an individual’.

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The report read: ‘As I approached them, Reffold continued yelling and appeared as though he was about to fight the individual. Reffold was still yelling and had taken up an aggressive stance.’

The six British sailors arrested in Jacksonville, Florida. Picture: Jacksonville Police/Portsmouth NewsThe six British sailors arrested in Jacksonville, Florida. Picture: Jacksonville Police/Portsmouth News
The six British sailors arrested in Jacksonville, Florida. Picture: Jacksonville Police/Portsmouth News

‘After multiple failed attempts to gain compliance from Reffold, Officer S. Young delivered a drive stun with his agency- issued taser to Reffolds right thigh.’

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Officers saw Edwards ‘pull his right fist behind his back, swing it forward, and strike one of the subjects in the face’ before tasering and arresting him for affray and resisting arrest without violence.’ Matthew James Cotham, 22, and Dominic James Gregory, 19, were arrested for disorderly intoxication.

Officers approached Gregory when he became ‘verbally abusive’ to his shipmates trying to get him to the bus pick-up point for the ship and instead laid down in the road.

The HMS Queen Elizabeth was built in Rosyth, Fife. Picture: WikiCommons/Dave Jenkins/InfoGibraltarThe HMS Queen Elizabeth was built in Rosyth, Fife. Picture: WikiCommons/Dave Jenkins/InfoGibraltar
The HMS Queen Elizabeth was built in Rosyth, Fife. Picture: WikiCommons/Dave Jenkins/InfoGibraltar
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The report read: ‘He was instructed to get up and get out of the roadway. The subject refused, he was then informed he would be arrested if he did not get up.

‘The subject was placed in handcuffs and had to be picked up out of the roadway.’

Steven Gorley from Radcliffe, Manchester, was arrested for trespassing on property after a security manager flagged police down outside Lynch’s Irish Pub and was described as ‘extremely intoxicated’.

The arrest report for Jamie William Lutas was unavailable. All of the sailors were taken to Duval County Jail after police officers failed to make contact with HMS Queen Elizabeth. The ship’s company is on an 11-week deployment, having left on August 18.

On Friday a Royal Navy spokeswoman said: ‘We can confirm that a number of naval personnel are assisting US police with their inquiries. It would be inappropriate to comment further at this time.’