Retired engineer convicted of blowing up Ulez camera with homemade bomb
Kevin Rees used an improvised explosive device to blow up the Ulez enforcement camera months after the zone was expanded to his area
A retired engineer has been convicted of blowing up a Ulez camera in south-east London with a homemade bomb.
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Following the expansion of the ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) in August 2023, Kevin Rees used what was described as a "low-sophistication" improvised explosive device (IED) to destroy the enforcement camera in Sidcup in December 2023.
Rees, 63, was arrested by counter-terror police following the blast, which was caused by a metal cylinder filled with an explosive powder.
The bomb damaged cars and property up to 100 metres (328 feet) away, including cars, houses and a child's bedroom.
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Rees denied one count of causing an explosion likely to endanger life or cause serious injury to property, and three counts of possessing prohibited weapons.
He will be sentenced at a later date.
The Metropolitan Police's Detective Superintendent James Derham said it was "remarkable" that the explosion had not resulted in any injuries or loss of life.
Det Supt Derham said Rees had risked the safety of the public amid his hatred of the Ulez scheme.
"He showed a complete disregard for the welfare and safety of the people who live in or were travelling through the area at the time of the explosion, all because he was unhappy with the Ulez scheme," Derham added.
Woolwich Crown Court heard that Rees drove from Shuttle Close, Sidcup, to the site of the camera before planting and igniting the explosive.
Rees, of Harcourt Avenue in the south London suburb, was seen by a witness walking quickly away from the scene.
The explosion damaged a van, blew out the tyre of a car, as well as damaging a wall, front porch, shed and a Wendy house.
Shrapnel from the blast shot through a passing car into a passenger seat, while another piece of metal damaged the window frame of a child's bedroom.
Forensic officers found that the device used black powder, aluminium powder, and other materials linked to homemade explosives at Rees' home.
Authorities also seized three stun guns from Rees's home.
Bethan David, head of the Crown Prosecution Service's counter-terrorism division, said: "This was not an act of protest or momentary vandalism.
"This was a deliberate and dangerous attack involving a homemade explosive device, carried out in a residential street and designed to destroy public infrastructure.
"Whatever his views on the Ulez scheme, Kevin Rees crossed a serious line by constructing a homemade bomb and detonating it in a public place. It was pure chance that no one suffered serious injury or worse."