Bognor man convicted of hate crimes over racist social media tweets
A number of messages contained references to Nazi symbols
A Bognor man has been convicted of hate crime offences following an investigation by Counter Terrorism Policing South East.
32-year-old Tobias Powell, of Wythering Close was found guilty of four counts of using threatening or abusive words and intending to stir up racial hatred at Worthing Magistrates' Court on Friday (April 16th).
Powell published a series of social media posts between July and October 2018, which had racist connotations.
In a series of tweets, Powell called for a civil war to stop the ethnic suicide of white people; showed support for the terrorist organisation National Action; and shared a picture of his tattoo which contained the Nazi emblem.
In a tweet on 6 July 2018 Powell mentioned MP Joanne Cox, who was murdered by a man holding right wing views, saying she was an ‘alleged open traitor and enemy of the people.’
During a search of his house a number of items were seized, including numerous books on white supremacy and a number of electronic devices. It was uncovered that Powell had set up his Apple ID name as Adolf Hitler and talked on Twitter about White Power.
Detective Chief Superintendent Kath Barnes, Head of CTPSE, said:
“The evidence gathered during the investigation showed that Powell had some very unacceptable views.
“Whilst this was not a terrorism case, the nature of the rhetoric Powell had shared on social media, meant that it was only right for specialist officers from Counter Terrorism Policing to conduct a thorough investigation.
“We know there is a fine line between hate speech and terrorism. Showing support for terrorist organisations is not acceptable and if you do that, you should expect to be investigated by us.
“Police are committed to tackling all forms of toxic ideology which has the potential to threaten public safety and security.
Chief Inspector Jon Carter, Arun and Chichester District Commander for Sussex Police, said:
“This case shows the importance of thorough investigation of any use of the Internet to spread hate and dangerous material.
"The public can be reassured that there are systems in place to follow up all such reports, but it is also important to reassure local people that this was a very isolated matter for this area, and that however obnoxious Powell’s language was, there was no reference to or threat to the local community.”