Muslim convert found guilty of planning 'atrocity' terror attack

A Muslim convert has been found guilty of planning a terror attack described as an "atrocity". Jordan Richardson, 21, was convicted at Leeds Crown Court.

The court heard how he started planning an "atrocity", with possible targets including a shopping centre, after becoming interested in an "extremist, fundamentalist" interpretation of the religion. Richardson, who prosecutors said "regularly expressed a wish to kill Jews", was arrested on his way to work in Howden, East Yorkshire, in December last year with instructions on how to make mustard gas and a note which said: "Throw all grenades into crowd; Shoot bystanders; Stab anyone who comes close; Do not get taken alive." Leeds Crown Court jurors heard a crossbow was found at Richardson's home, and his internet history showed an "affiliation with extreme Islamist ideology, (including) material depicting and glorifying terrorist actions".

The court heard one possible target of the defendant, whose Instagram accounts included one with the handle "Anglo Jihadi", was Meadowhall shopping centre, near Sheffield, which was referenced in his social media posts.

Richardson, of Oliver Close, Howden, told the trial his behaviour was a form of fantasy and escape from the rest of his life, where he felt depressed and isolated, and that he was "role playing the character of an extremist".

But prosecutors said he "wasn't just an online fantasist" but an extremist who was "going to put his jihadi fantasies into reality".

On Monday Richardson was found guilty of one count of preparing for acts of terrorism, two counts of collecting information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, and three counts of distributing terrorist publications.

Opening the case to jurors last month, prosecutor Katherine Robinson said: "(Richardson) regularly expressed a wish to kill Jews, for example using the terminology - the pillagers, the big noses and the money.

"He suggested going to Palestine to fight Jews and he searched for how to volunteer for Hamas from the UK and how to get to Palestine.

"He made a joke about going into a synagogue in a suicide vest."

Ms Robinson said Richardson "stated that he converted to Islam the day after Ramadan" and expressed his desires "to conduct jihad and kill infidels".

Jurors were shown a video Richardson posted on Instagram of Meadowhall shopping centre, followed by a brightly coloured clip featuring pictures of rainbows and dolphins, overlaid with the words: "How life feels when you finally give up and just start killing people brutally."

Other video clips shown to the jury included Richardson smashing a statue of Buddha in a garden, describing how it was a "polytheistic idol", and also of him firing a crossbow.

The prosecutor said the crossbow found in his home was bought online by the defendant for £35.95, along with a pack of 10 crossbow bolts.

She said the recipe for mustard gas "has been assessed as viable and potentially fatal for anyone exposed to it" and that this substance would be capable of being loaded into a grenade.

Ms Robinson told the court: "We say the only possible intention in sharing that sort of material, in particular with a group of people who had professed allegiance to the Islamic State, was to encourage terrorist acts, in particular given he had discussed locations, including a UK embassy and Meadowhall."

The judge, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb, said she wanted reports prepared on Richardson before he is sentenced on December 15.

She told him she wanted him to co-operate with the probation officers and give them a "full and frank indication of your current thinking" so she can assess his "future dangerousness".

Richardson showed no emotion as the jury foreman returned the verdicts.

Head of Counter Terrorism Policing North East Detective Chief Superintendent James Dunkerley said: "Jordan Richardson was inspired by the violent propaganda of the so-called Islamic State.

"He sought to spread their ideology further by sharing their disturbing material and encouraging others to commit terrorist attacks.

"He was preparing to conduct an attack on members of the public, and to become a martyr to others who share his ideology."

Mr Dunkerley said: "This case shows the real-world threat that terrorist content online poses, and how quickly people who view this content can radicalise themselves.

"In just a few short months, Richardson went from being a new convert to Islam to being a committed and dangerous extremist.

"Working closely with our partners, we were able to stop him before anyone was harmed."