Nazi-worshipping trio's cache of swords and crossbows uncovered
Right-wing extremists Christopher Ringrose, 34, Marco Pitzettu, 25, and Brogan Stewart, 25, were found guilty of terrorism offences at Sheffield Crown Court on Wednesday.
The men, who were part of a militant online group, claimed they were merely fantasists who never intended to carry out an attack.
Credit: Counter Terrorism Policing North East
However, the jury rejected their claims, and anti-terrorism detectives believe that if they had not been arrested, they would have carried out a mass casualty attack.
A nine-week-long trial heard how the group, which had been infiltrated by undercover officers, idolised Hitler and the Nazis, shared racist slurs and glorified mass murderers.
Ringrose had also 3D-printed most of the components of a semi-automatic firearm at the time of his arrest and was trying to get the remaining parts.
Jurors were shown a video of a police firearms expert testing a completed version of the weapon to show it would have been viable.
Opening the trial in March, Jonathan Sandiford KC, prosecuting, said: 'The prosecution say that these three defendants were Right-wing extremists who regarded themselves as National Socialists, or Nazis, and they supported the National Socialist movement in the UK, such as it is or indeed was.'
He said the defendants followed a cause that embraced an admiration for Hitler, white supremacy, a 'hatred towards black and other non-white races', and glorification and admiration for mass killers who have targeted the black and Muslim community.
The prosecutor told the jury that the defendants formed a group called Einsatz 14 in January 2024, with 'like-minded extremists' who wanted to 'go to war for their chosen cause'.
He told the jury of seven men and five women that the men all held a 'belief that there must soon be a race war between the white and other races'.
Credit: Counter Terrorism Policing North East
Mr Sandiford said an undercover officer called Blackheart was also part of Einsatz 14 and was referred to as the 'Obergruppenführer'.
Stewart developed a mission statement for the group that said its 'basic duties' were to 'target mosques, Islamic education centres and other similar locations'.
The court heard the group discussed potential targets at the end of January 2024.
The court heard Stewart sent Blackheart details of the Islamic education centre on Mexborough Road in Leeds, including a Google Maps image.
Det Ch Supt James Dunkerley, head of Counter Terrorism Policing North East, said the men had collected more than 200 weapons, including knives, swords, body armour and a stun gun.
But he said that 'most concerning' was the fact they tried to acquire a gun and this led them to build a 3D-printed firearm.
The officer said: 'We saw this building of a firearm, and we saw them then changing their conversation and an up-tick in their hatred and looking to identify a real-world target, which could have been talk of a synagogue, an Islamic institution, a mosque, education...
'When we saw that up-tick changing, and they were looking to come out into the real world, that's when we took the action to arrest them.'
Mr Dunkerley said: 'That was a tipping point for us. The protection of the public was absolutely paramount, and this wasn't some fantasy.'
He added: 'If they took that 3D-printed firearm onto the streets and discharged it, it would kill somebody.'
Bethan David, head of the Crown Prosecution Service's Counter Terrorism Division, said: 'These extremists were plotting violent acts of terrorism against synagogues, mosques and an Islamic education centre. By their own admission, they were inspired by SS tactics and supremacist ideology.
'Had Christopher Ringrose managed to completely finish building the 3D-printed semi-automatic firearm that he had started, it could have been used, leading to devastating consequences.'
Ringrose, of Cannock, Staffordshire; Pitzettu, of Mickleover, Derbyshire; and Stewart, of Tingley, Wakefield, West Yorkshire, were all found guilty of preparing acts of terrorism and charges of collecting information likely to be useful to a person preparing or committing an act of terrorism.
Ringrose was also convicted of manufacturing a prohibited weapon, while Pitzettu pleaded guilty to obtaining an illegal stun gun at a previous hearing.
The defendants will be sentenced on July 17.
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