15-year-old boy becomes first to be charged with rioting following recent UK unrest

LONDON (AP) — A 15-year-old boy has become the first person to be charged with rioting following a recent wave of violent unrest that swept across the U.K. Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service said the teen, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, would appear at South Tyneside Youth Court later Thursday. He was charged following disorder in Sunderland in northern England on Aug. 2. Hundreds of people have been arrested since riots erupted on July 30 after misinformation spread online that the suspect in a knife attack that killed three children was a Muslim asylum-seeker. Many have been charged with violent disorder, but no one else had so far been charged with rioting, a more serious offense that carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.