56yo woman arrested and protesters forced to clean up mess after Extinction Rebellion stunt

An Extinction Rebellion protester was arrested and the rest of the group forced to clean up their mess following an anti-Santos stunt that left workers and business owners fuming.

A stunt in Adelaide’s CBD on Friday left workers and a business owner fuming, as one protester was arrested and others forced by police to clean up their mess.

The protest began about 9.40am on Friday as a truckload of Extinction Rebellion demonstrators descended on oil and gas giant Santos’ Adelaide headquarters.

Frankie Marafioti, co-owner of Bluprint, a cafe in the Santos building, witnessed the stunt.

Bluprint cafe co-owner Frankie Marafioti outside his business that is next to the Santos Building at 60 Flinders St, Adelaide where Extinction Rebellion activists protest on a weekly basis. Picture: Brenton Edwards

“Out of nowhere, they pulled up and 30 to 40 of them came out,” Mr Marafioti said.

“They dumped a whole lot of sand there and a blow up boat and started chanting anti-Santos slogans and drumming.

“Then a lady glued herself to the building.

The organisers said there were at least 30 protesters involved. Picture: Supplied

The stunt included a pink inflatable boat and sand. Picture: Supplied

“She actually glued herself to our shopfront — not the part of the building that Santos is.”

Mr Marafioti said he is completely independent from Santos, and was upset his business had again become collateral damage of the protests.

“There’s nothing wrong with protesting and I get what they’re saying, but it’s important to think about others,” he told The Advertiser.

“People are just trying to go to work, just trying to make a living.”

The 56yo West Croydon woman was arrested and charged with disorderly behaviour. Picture: Supplied

City worker David Grocke was drinking coffee with friends at a nearby cafe.

He thought the group’s notorious maximum disruption protest method was ineffective.

“I don’t think it’s effective,” he said.

“It actually turns me off them.

The oil and gas company’s city headquarters, and collaterally Bluprint cafe, have frequently been the target of Extinction Rebellion protests, including a vandalisation incident on May 18, 2023 that caused $4900 in damages.

Damage from the May 18, 2023 attack. Picture: Morgan Sette

The escalation of the group’s protests across the states prompted Premier Peter Malinauskas to rush through new controversial protester penalties that night which he said would provide a “much stronger deterrent to those who may consider engaging in this type of conduct”.

These amendments increased the maximum penalty from $750 to $50,000 or three months imprisonment.

The damage affected Mr Marafioti’s cafe, a business he said is completely independent from Santos. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Morgan Sette

An SA Police spokeswoman confirmed the 56-year-old West Croydon woman who glued herself to the Santos building was arrested and charged with disorderly behaviour and property damage.

The spokeswoman clarified the alleged offender was not charged under the new enhanced protester penalty law.

She was released on bail to appear at Adelaide Magistrates Court on May 6.

The 56yo West Croydon woman was arrested and charged with disorderly behaviour. Picture: Supplied.

Police forced the protesters to clean up after their stunt.

A Santos spokeswoman urged protesters to be more respectful.

“Protest activity should be respectful of those going about their day,” she said.

A spokeswoman for Extinction Rebellion told The Advertiser the group planned to continue protesting.

“We’re going to keep protesting outside of Santos to hold them accountable,” she said.

“We’re just ordinary citizens who are concerned about the climate.

“We care about the planet and don’t want to see the expansion of fossil fuels.”

Originally published as 56yo woman arrested and protesters forced to clean up mess after Extinction Rebellion stunt