Two men from London who used a neo-Nazi podcast series to encourage listeners to commit violent acts against ethnic minorities have been convicted of terrorism offences.
Christopher Gibbons and Tyrone Patten-Walsh used their neo-Nazi podcast - which had nearly 1,000 subscribers and more than 152,000 views - to air homophobic, racist, anti-Semitic, Islamophobic and misogynistic views.
On some occasions during the 21 episodes that aired, they encouraged listeners to go out and commit acts of terrorist violence.
An investigation by the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command also found Gibbons had created an online neo-Nazi library containing more than 500 videos of extreme, right-wing-related speeches and propaganda.
The material was analysed by a team of specialist officers, and found to be in breach of terrorism legislation.
Officers identified seven videos and a document that, as well as containing extremist views, encouraged others to carry out terrorist acts.
Gibbons, 40, of south London, and Patten-Walsh, 35, of east London, were arrested in May 2021, and charged on August 16 that year.
Both men went on trial for eight counts of encouraging acts of terrorism - each count relating to a different podcast episode. Gibbons also went on trial for two counts of dissemination of terrorist publications.
They were found guilty of all charges, following a trial at Kingston Crown Court which concluded on Friday.
They have been remanded in custody to be sentenced at Kingston Crown Court on Tuesday, September 26.
Commander Dominic Murphy, who leads the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command, said: “Gibbons and Patten-Walsh thought that the fact they were airing their hateful views and advocating terrorist acts in plain sight, on a radio and podcast platform, somehow gave them some legitimacy and meant they wouldn’t face any consequences.
“They were wrong, and both our investigation and a jury has found that they sought to encourage terrorism in how they expressed their abhorrent extreme right-wing views.
“During the course of the investigation, detectives reviewed hundreds of hours of material, and the result of their work was the compelling case that was presented at court which has resulted in their convictions.
“If you come across extremist content online, report it to police and we will act. Information from the public is vitally important in our fight against terrorism.”
If you see or hear something unusual or suspicious and think someone may be engaging in terrorist activity, trust your instincts and act by reporting it in confidence at gov.uk/ACT or the anti-terrorist hotline on 0800 789 321. In an emergency, dial 999.
