Two people appear in court accused of damaging Trump golf course

Two people have appeared in court charged with maliciously damaging US President Donald Trump’s Turnberry golf course.

Ricky Southall, 33, of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, and Umza Bashir, 55, of Leeds, were charged with malicious mischief when they appeared in private at Ayr Sheriff Court on Monday.

They made no plea and were committed for further examination and released on bail ahead of a further court appearance.

Police were called to the Trump Turnberry course on Maidens Road, Turnberry, South Ayrshire, at about 4.40am on March 8.

Red paint was sprayed on the clubhouse at the 800-acre resort, and damage was also caused to the greens.

The latest court appearance comes after another man appeared at the same court on March 31, charged with malicious mischief in connection with the damage at the resort.

Kieran Robson, 33, of Galashiels in the Scottish Borders, made no plea during the brief hearing and was committed for further examination and released on bail pending a further court appearance.

A Scottish Government publication from October 2023 defines the common law offence of malicious mischief as the wilful, wanton and malicious destruction of, or damage to, the property of another.

It notes the charge should only be recorded “where widespread damage is caused, where the value of the damage is considerable, or where there is disruption of power supply, flooding or similar”.

The publication states there is no specific financial value where a potential crime would be recorded as malicious mischief rather than vandalism but multiple thousands of pounds of alleged damage would be required for it to be recorded as the former.