A far-right British Army reject has been found guilty of having bomb-making manuals.
Doorman Sejr Forster, 25, from Norwich, was convicted at the Old Bailey of collecting terrorist publications following a trial.
The court was told Forster had joined the Army in May 2016, but was “ultimately deemed unsuitable” after engaging in “extreme-right rhetoric”.
He had earlier been excluded from college for his views in May 2013.
In the past, (Forster) described himself as being ‘obsessed’ with right-wing culture— Ben Lloyd, prosecution
Ben Lloyd, prosecuting, said: “In May 2022, he said in summary that he accepted that he had been involved with the far-right since he was aged about 13.
“His interest had been in EDL (English Defence League) and National Action (NA), which at school led to him being referred to Prevent.
“He had engaged with Prevent for about seven months. He had briefly joined the Army but was discharged due to his association with National Action.
“When NA was legal, he had been involved in printing off posters for them.
“In the past, he described himself as being ‘obsessed’ with right-wing culture.”
NA was proscribed by the Government following the murder of MP Jo Cox in 2016.
When police officers searched Forster’s home last year, they discovered a stash of extremist material.
Mr Lloyd said: “This material shows that the defendant was fascinated by extreme right views.
“In fact, the prosecution says this material shows that he shared those views and beliefs himself.
“He also had an interest in weapons, things like guns, knives, and explosives.
“It is why he looked at and downloaded the material onto his telephone.”
Mr Lloyd rejected the suggestion the defendant clicked on the documents but did not intend to download them.
On Friday, Forster was found guilty of two counts of collecting of a terrorist publications.
One related to The Advanced Anarchist Arsenal which was downloaded on his mobile device and included viable instructions for the manufacture of explosive substances.
The other charge related to a hard copy book called US Army Improvised Munitions Handbook on the manufacture of explosive substances.
Before his trial, Forster had pleaded guilty to possessing an item described as a DIY Sheet Metal Self-Loading Pistol – Practical Scrap Metal Small Arms, an “illustrated guide” for producing a firearm.
Forster was acquitted of having a document named Middle Eastern Terrorist – Bomb Designs, which was said to detail the construction of explosive devices.
A jury at the Old Bailey deliberated for less than four hours to reach their verdicts.
Forster was remanded into custody to be sentenced at a later date.
