Former prison officer found guilty of possessing "terrorist manual"
Prosecutors said Ashley Podsiad-Sharp, 42, had instructions on how to build weapons on a laptop
Last updated 26th May 2023
A former prison officer who was described by prosecutors as a "racist, homophobic, neo-Nazi terrorist" has been found guilty of possessing a "terrorist manual".
Ashley Podsiad-Sharp, 42, was found guilty by a jury at Sheffield Crown Court on Thursday of possession of a document containing information of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism.
He has been cleared of a further allegation of disseminating a terrorist publication.
The defendant was remanded in custody and will be sentenced on July 21.
Remanding Podsiad-Sharp in custody at Sheffield Crown Court, Judge Jeremy Richardson KC told him: "You have been convicted by the jury of a very serious criminal offence.
"Indeed, it is an offence related to terrorism.
"You had possession of an extremely detailed manual setting out the way in which terrorists could kill people, maim people and endeavour to avoid detection."
The judge stressed the detail contained in the White Resistance Manual, saying that the printed version he was given was two inches thick.
Judge Richardson told Podsiad-Sharp he wanted the Probation Service to assess whether he was considered "dangerous offender" before he is sentenced.
He refused bail, saying he was concerned Podsiad-Sharp was a flight-risk.
The judge said: "You are married to a Polish national.
"You are an intelligent man and you are a resourceful man.
"There are real risks, so it seems to me, that you could leave the jurisdiction of this country."
He told Podsiad-Sharp: "There is but one sentence in a case of this kind and that is a sentence of imprisonment.
"The issue for me to decide is now long that sentence should be."
Podsiad-Sharp, who lives in the Barnsley area, wore a suit for the two-week long trial but opted for a blue-and-yellow Adidas track-suit top for the final verdicts.
He thanked the jury when he was acquitted of the final count and shouted "tell my wife I love her", as he left the dock.