One of the residents of Barton House who led the campaign to improve fire safety in tower blocks has been arrested on suspicion of handling stolen property, after fire alarms being installed in the tower block went missing.
Shaban Ali was the secretary of the Bristol branch of the community union ACORN and had been a Green Party candidate in May's local election, but has stepped down from both roles following his arrest.
The Greens said they could not comment on an ongoing police investigation. Mr Ali had been announced earlier this month as a candidate for the party in the Eastville ward at May's elections, but last week, Bristol Live reported that he had now stepped down as a candidate after his candidacy was suspended, when the arrest came to light. This week, the Green Party announced that Ed Fraser is the party's new candidate.
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A spokesperson for Avon and Somerset police told Bristol Live last week: “We can confirm a 37-year-old man from the St Philips area of Bristol was arrested on February 7 on suspicion of handling stolen goods. The arrest was made following a report a number of fire alarms had been stolen from Barton House, on Aiken Street, St Philips. The man has been released under investigation and enquiries into the thefts are ongoing.”
Neither the Green Party or Mr Ali said they would comment on the matter while police investigations were continuing. Mr Ali is a resident of Barton House and, as the secretary of the Bristol branch of the tenants' union Acorn, was prominent in campaigning for better treatment for residents of Barton House after the evacuation of the tower block back in November, regularly criticising the way the council was handling the evacuation and its communications with residents.
He was also a key member of Acorn’s successful campaign to persuade Bristol City Council to allocate £100 million on better fire safety measures for tower blocks across Bristol, following a series of fires in tower blocks in Barton Hill, Lawrence Hill and Easton in the autumn of 2022, one of which was fatal.
Mr Ali was one of four members of Acorn who the council’s head of legal services announced were banned from going inside City Hall, following disruption which led to a council meeting in December being temporarily stopped.
Barton House residents and members of the tenants' group had disrupted the full council meeting on December 12 after they were told they couldn’t ask questions to the mayor and the council about the evacuation of the tower block in November.
A spokesperson for Acorn said: “ACORN has recently campaigned for fire alarms as part of tower block fire safety campaigns, and we are proud to have won commitments from the council to fit fire alarms where they were missing.
“We will continue our Justice for Barton House campaign to make sure the residents are treated fairly after what has been a traumatic few months, working with the residents of Barton House to ensure the safety of their homes,” he added.
