An evangelical preacher who told a court that his mission was to help members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints who were troubled about the system of beliefs in their faith and to educate the general public concerning the “sinister, anti-social and anti-Christian nature of the Mormon cult” was yesterday found not guilty of committing a religiously prejudicial breach of the peace.

Andrew Robert Price (43), of Weston Road, Chiswick, denied committing a breach by shouting religious slogans, attempting to force religious tracts into people’s hands, and pinning religiously prejudicial posters on trees outside the Mormon Church in Bingham Terrace, Dundee, on March 7 last year.

A member of the congregation, Elspeth Elrick, said she had walked to the church for Sunday service and saw Price tacking posters, that were anti-Mormon in her opinion, to trees. When she asked what he was doing, Miss Elrick said Price said, “You are all devil worshippers and will be going to hell.”

Miss Elrick was upset and spoke to the bishop, John Nicoll.

Mr Nicoll told Dundee Sheriff Court he and two missionaries talked to Price about what he was doing and it was an amicable meeting. Price left at about 10.30 am in a friend’s car.

At the end of the services, about 2.30 pm, Price had returned and put up more posters and was trying to hand members of the church tracts.

He was “more vociferous” than before, but Mr Nicoll said he was not alarmed.

However Price was still there at 3 pm, and it was decided that the police would have to be called.

Two officers arrived and asked what Mr Nicoll wanted them to do—ask Price to move along or have him charged with a breach of the peace.

Mr Nicoll said that if Price removed the posters and went away that would be the end of it.

However, although Price took the posters down he refused to go away, and was arrested.

In evidence Price said that he had been “witness” to the Mormon cult for many years both in the UK and the USA.

He was, he told the court, the leading anti-Mormon critic in the UK.

He had come up from London having been told by a friend, a pastor in the Baptist Church, that there was a Mormon church near his home in Dundee, and had spent the Saturday night with him and his wife before going to the church to put up posters and to enter into dialogue with people going in and out.

He categorically denied making statements about devil worship and people going to hell.

“All I want is to see Mormons delivered from the bondage of this cult,” he said.

He said although he willingly removed the posters when asked to by police, he refused to leave the area as a matter of principle as he believed in freedom of speech.

Sheriff Miller said that he found everyone who had given evidence had been telling the truth.

“The question is whether Mr Price’s conduct amounted to a breach of the peace,” he said.

“The standard is a high one—the conduct has to be genuinely alarming to people or disturbing to the community, or flagrant,” he added.

“In this case there was no swearing, offensive language, threats or anything to suggest Mr Price was acting aggressively or being disorderly.

“His actions, therefore, did not exceed acceptable and lawful conduct and I therefore find him not guilty.”