Man sentenced following £12k graffiti spree across Ely

A graffiti vandal who caused more than £12,000 damage during a spree across Ely has been sentenced.

Samuel Buttery was captured on CCTV and witnessed by a street cleaner tagging ‘snot’ on a roadside cabinet on Newnham Street and a bin on Market Street just before 7am on 6 June.

Neighbourhood police officers began patrolling the area and discovered around 57 ‘snot’ tags on lamp posts, bins, road signs, walls, bus stops and trees.

On 13 June, while photographing the evidence, officers spotted 25-year-old Buttery. He was arrested and admitted being the ‘snot’ tagger. At his home in New Barns Avenue, officers found graffiti pens and graffiti drawings.

At Cambridge Magistrates’ Court yesterday (16 December), Buttery was sentenced to four months in prison, suspended for two years, after pleading guilty to 14 counts of criminal damage at an earlier hearing. He must also carry out 150 hours unpaid work and pay £3,433.01 in compensation.

PC Jamie Brown, from the East Cambridgeshire Neighbourhood team, said: “Buttery has plagued the city with unsightly graffiti, making the area look run down and dirty.

“His actions have had a significant impact on the community and come at a huge cost – more than £12,000 – to clean up. In some cases the graffiti never gets removed and remains a blemish on the area.

“We hope this case sends a strong message that this type of damage will not be tolerated in society and those responsible will be caught and put before the courts.

“We are now working with the court to secure a Criminal Behaviour Order to prevent Buttery reoffending. He will appear in court again next year.”

CCTV footage of Buttery can be viewed on our YouTube channel.