Aberdeenshire neo Nazi convicted of planning terror attacks

A Banff neo-Nazi who had components for potential bombs and who kept a list of Scottish mosque addresses is behind bars after being convicted of planning terror attacks.

25-year-old Connor Ward acquired hundreds of ball bearings which could be used in pipe bombs.

The High Court in Edinburgh heard how the fascist acquired an arms cache which included a stun gun, hundreds of knuckle dusters and knives.

Ward, who was previously jailed for three years in 2012 for possessing an explosive substance, also acquired a number of deactivated bullets. The court heard the ammo could have been reactivated for use in a firearm.

Police discovered the lethal horde after receiving a tip-off that Ward had broke strict firearms legislation by buying a stun gun from abroad.

Detectives who searched Ward's home in Banff also found that he had acquired a mobile phone signal jamming device and a machine for picking up hidden bugs.

Ward had downloaded tens of thousands of documents from the Internet on firearms and survival techniques. The files also contained extreme right wing propaganda and military tactics.

"Although he operated alone the weapons... had the potential to cause serious harm" - Detective Chief Superintendent Gerry Mclean

Detectives also found a Google Maps style file containing the postal addresses of five Islamic places of worship in the Aberdeen area on Ward's computer.

Professor Matthew Feldman was asked by the police to analyse the content found on Ward's computer.

The academic, who specialises in studying extreme right wing political groups, said he found that Ward had a total of 2,043 'extreme right wing' punk rock songs on his computer.

Mr Feldman said he found that Ward had also downloaded a 214 page copy of Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler.

Professor Feldman believed that Ward was an "exemplary" Neo Nazi.

Ward is expected to be sentenced at the High Court in Glasgow on the 11th of April.

Following the five week trial, Detective Chief Superintendent Gerry Mclean, of Police Scotland's Organised Crime and Counter Terrorism Unit, said: "Following Ward's arrest a vast amount of material was seized by officers who invested a significant amount of time into quantifying the scale of Ward's interest in terrorism"

"Although he operated alone, the weapons, manuals and downloads he possessed had the potential to cause serious harm"

"While we may never know the full extent of Ward's intentions thanks to the early intervention of Police, we do know that we cannot underestimate the dangerous nature of any behaviour or activity linked to terrorism. These acts are very rare, not least in the North East of Scotland, and while concerted action takes place every day alongside our partners to protect the public it is crucial that communities remain vigilant"