Three neo-Nazi extremists who amassed an arsenal of more than 200 weapons and plotted terrorist attacks on mosques and synagogues in England have been jailed for between eight and 11 years. Christopher Ringrose, 35, Marco Pitzettu, 26, and Brogan Stewart, 25, communicated online and formed a group with 'like-minded extremists' who wanted to 'go to war for their chosen cause', a jury heard.
The nine-week trial at Sheffield Crown Court heard how the trio idolised Hitler and the Nazis, used racist slurs, glorified mass murderers and encouraged violence against anyone deemed an enemy. They were arrested when security services believed an attack was imminent, after undercover officers infiltrated their online group. The jury rejected defence claims that the men were fantasists with no intention of carrying out their threats.
Among their arsenal were machetes, hunting knives, swords, axes, crossbows, body armour, a stun gun and a baseball bat. Ringrose had also 3D-printed most of the components of a semi-automatic firearm and was trying to obtain the remaining parts. The men, believing a race war was imminent, discussed targets including mosques, Islamic education centres and synagogues. They identified an Islamic centre in Leeds to attack and discussed abducting and torturing an imam.
On Friday, Ms Justice Cutts jailed Stewart for 11 years, Ringrose for 10 years and Pitzettu for eight years. She said she believed all three continued to adhere to their extreme rightwing ideology. Prosecutor Jonathan Sandiford KC said the defendants 'expressed hatred for and desire and willingness to engage in serious violence against people they perceived as enemies of their cause'.
After sentencing, DCS James Dunkerley of Counter Terrorism Policing North East said: 'They were a group that espoused vile racist views and advocated for violence... All three took real-world steps to plan and prepare for carrying out an attack on innocent citizens.'
