A teenage boy who has admitted to throwing a large seat from the top floor of an east London shopping centre claimed it was “not that deep”.
The scene took place in Westfield shopping centre in Stratford on March 1, and prompted widespread outrage - with viewers branding footage of the incident "horrific".
The two 15-year-olds involved in the incident, who cannot be named for legal reasons, went on to appear at Stratford Magistrates’ Court, both accompanied by their parents.
The teenager who threw the seat - estimated to have weighed approximately 15kg - pleaded guilty to £500 of criminal damage as well as recklessly causing a public nuisance.
SNAPCHAT
|The teenager who threw the seat - estimated to have weighed approximately 15kg - pleaded guilty to £500 of criminal damage as well as recklessly causing a public nuisance
Prosecutor Elizabeth Ajayi said it was "fortunate that nobody was injured" after the seat was thrown from a height of around 50ft.
She added the pair had carried out previous stunts like this, including "throwing objects off bridges at trains" and revealed that the youth who threw the seat had told police "it's not that deep, it did not hit no-one".
Ajayi also confirmed that both boys had admitted their involvement - but the boy who allegedly filmed the incident has denied his charges.
He will appear in court again on September 24 for a case management hearing ahead of his trial in front of a district judge on October 2.
SNAPCHAT
|Prosecutor Elizabeth Ajayi said it was 'fortunate that nobody was injured' after the seat was thrown from a height of around 50ft
A Westfield security officer said in a witness impact statement that since the incident, there had been "unease" among customers.
The boy who admitted to throwing the seat, which narrowly missed customers, has been released on bail until he is sentenced on August 13.
During this time, he is subject to a curfew and must live and sleep at his address, not contact his co-defendant and not enter the E20 postcode area - which covers the Westfield in question.
A previous charge of criminal damage which recklessly endangered life was dropped.
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
|The scene took place in Westfield shopping centre in Stratford on March 1
At an earlier hearing, one of the accused teenagers had to be told to take his hands out of his tracksuit pockets when talking to magistrates.
During the video of the incident, which was originally posted on messaging app Snapchat, someone can be heard saying: "There's no way this guy's doing this, oh my God."
In a separate incident on May 1, "police were called after a group of approximately eight to 10 males, some of whom are suspected to be under 18 were seen fighting with weapons" in Primark in the shopping centre.
This incident occurred when Westfield was "crowded with shoppers".