A 28-year-old lout wept in the dock as he was jailed for two weeks after he 'drank 16 pints' then urinated beside a memorial honouring murdered PC Keith Palmer in Westminster during far-right protests on Saturday.
Andrew Banks, of Stansted, Essex, said he attended the demonstrations in the city centre in a bid to 'protect statues' - though admitted in court today he wasn't sure which memorials he was there to defend.
As violence exploded in central London, Banks was pictured urinating near the stone memorial to the police officer who was stabbed to death by Khalid Masood in the 2017 terror attack.
Banks, who was charged with outraging public decency by police on Sunday night after handing himself into authorities, appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court today.
He admitted the offence and was jailed for 14 days by magistrates.
Prosecutor Michael Mallon said Banks, a Tottenham Hotspur fan, was in central London to 'protect statues', but admitted he did not know which statues.
He was said to have drunk 16 pints during Friday night into Saturday morning, and had not been to sleep.
Banks's counsel, Stuart Harris, said his client was 'ashamed by his action', and had mental health issues.
The court heard Banks contacted police after being confronted by his father, the court heard.
Scotland Yard said previously that a man had been arrested in Essex after presenting himself at a police station.
The charge came after a photograph of the 'appalling and shameful' act was widely shared on social media yesterday as violent clashes between far-right protesters and police took place in central London.
Speaking in response to the image, Metropolitan Police Commander Bas Javid said: 'We are aware of a disgusting and abhorrent image circulating on social media of a man appearing to urinate on a memorial to PC Palmer.
'I feel for PC Palmer's family, friends and colleagues. We have immediately launched an investigation and will gather all the evidence available to us and take appropriate action.'
Banks, of Stansted, Essex, was branded a 'stupid plonker' by his father before being charged by police.
David Banks told The Sun: 'Sometimes young lads get a bit desperate. Andy picked a stupid place to go to the toilet.
'He's devastated. He can apologise for being a stupid plonker. But he's not the first person to have done that and I don't suppose he'll be the last.'
Several politicians last night expressed their disgust at the act and the Met Police Federation called for the man to be jailed after he was snapped during violent clashes between far-right protesters and police in central London yesterday.
Home Secretary Priti Patel branded the incident as 'absolutely appalling and shameful', criticising those involved for the 'shameful scenes' in Westminster Square.
PC Keith Palmer was stabbed to death while guarding the main vehicle entrance — Carriage Gates — by terrorist Khalid Masood on March 22, 2017. He was awarded a posthumous George Medal for his bravery in confronting the killer.
Hundreds of far-right and pro-statue protesters gathered in the capital on Saturday morning in anticipation of a Black Lives Matter demonstration later in the day.
Several hundred demonstrators, mostly white men, attended the protest organised by far-right groups, including Britain First, which claimed they wanted to protect statues such as Winston Churchill from vandalism.
But fights erupted in areas near the Houses of Parliament and Trafalgar Square as demonstrators repeatedly hounded police officers with foul-mouthed chants and missiles, smoke grenades and flares.
Shards of glass were strewn along the streets close to the Cenotaph on Whitehall after bottles were thrown at police officers clad in riot gear.
The violent scenes are in contrast with peaceful demonstrations that took place at Hyde Park and Marble Arch by anti-racism protesters in support of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement.