Five people have been charged with violent disorder outside a hotel housing asylum seekers, Merseyside Police have said.

Three teenage boys were among those arrested on Thursday after warrants were executed as part of an investigation into the disorder in Knowsley in February.

A police van was set on fire and missiles were thrown at officers after an initially peaceful protest turned violent at the Suites Hotel on Ribblers Lane.

Daniel Fulham, 38, of Old Rough Lane, Northwood Kirkby, and Brian McPadden, 60, of Britonside Avenue, Southdene, were charged alongside the three teenagers from Kirkby, aged 16, 17 and 13.

They have been bailed and will appear at Liverpool Magistrates’ Court on Thursday July 27.

Fifteen people from the Knowsley area were arrested at the time of the protest which police said left an officer and two members of the public with slight injuries.