Three neo-Nazis who conspired to carry out terror attacks on mosques and synagogues amid racist fantasies of a coming “race war” have been jailed after a nine-week trial at Sheffield Crown Court.
Christopher Ringrose, 34, Marco Pitzettu, 25, and Brogan Stewart, 25, were found guilty of preparing acts of terrorism and collecting information useful for terrorism. Prosecutors said the men stockpiled more than 200 weapons, including knives, swords, body armour, and a stun gun. Ringrose had also 3D-printed most of the components of a semi-automatic firearm, which police warned could have had “devastating consequences.”
Detective Chief Superintendent James Dunkerley, Head of Counter Terrorism Policing North East, said the arrests were made when investigators realised the group’s rhetoric was turning into concrete plans. “We saw this building of a firearm, and we saw them then changing their conversation and an uptick in their hatred and looking to identify a real-world target, which could have been talk of a synagogue, an Islamic institution, a mosque, education…” he said. “When we saw that uptick changing, and they were looking to come out into the real world, that’s when we took the action to arrest them. That was a tipping point for us. The protection of the public was absolutely paramount, and this wasn’t some fantasy.”
During sentencing, Mrs Justice Cutts said the men’s far-right ideology was “laid bare” in a 374-page dossier showing their admiration for Adolf Hitler and obsession with white supremacy. “These pages were filled with hate towards black and other non-white races, especially Muslim people and immigrants,” she said. “There were ideas of white supremacy and racial purity together with a belief that there must soon be a race war.” She added that their materials also showed the “glorification and admiration of Hitler and the Nazi Party,” as well as “mass killers who had targeted black or Muslim communities.”
Although the judge said a terrorist attack was not imminent, she stressed that the risk was escalating. “Mercifully, your plans and preparations were being monitored and were ultimately thwarted by the authorities. For that reason, they did not advance as far as I am satisfied they would otherwise have done. I do, however, find that a terrorist attack was likely in the not too distant future.”
Ringrose was sentenced to 10 years, Pitzettu to eight years, and Stewart to 11 years in prison. Each was also handed an extended licence period due to the ongoing danger they pose.
Prosecutor Jonathan Sandiford KC said the trio formed an online group called Einsatz 14, which they described as a network of “like-minded extremists” preparing for racial conflict. “These three defendants were right-wing extremists who regarded themselves as National Socialists, or Nazis,” he said. “They supported the National Socialist movement in the UK and believed there must soon be a race war between the white and other races.”
Stewart, who acted as the group’s self-appointed “Führer,” reportedly wrote online: “Hitler did more for his people than any politician. And for Britain to have a p*** and Zionist in charge of the country is absolutely outrageous.” In one Telegram post, he added: “Nazis wanted what’s best for the white people.”
The prosecutor revealed that Stewart had also shared plans to “target mosques, Islamic education centres, and similar locations,” and sent details of a specific site in Leeds to an undercover officer posing as a fellow extremist. “It depends how far we are willing to go,” Stewart allegedly told the officer. “It could be a beating with batons and bats or something more serious.”
After the sentencing, Detective Chief Superintendent Dunkerley said the trio’s actions went far beyond hateful online chatter. “These individuals came together in an online space, and what brought them together was extreme racial prejudice,” he said. “They held extreme racist views. They idolised the Nazi Party.” He added: “Those views were amplified in that online space, encouraged between them, and they looked then to start what I think was prepping for a real-world attack. Had we not taken steps to arrest them, we could have seen something play out in the real world that could have had fatal consequences.”
The three men, who had never met in person before their arrest, were detained after undercover officers infiltrated their encrypted online chats, where they discussed weapons, ideology, and potential targets. Police said their swift intervention likely prevented an act of terrorism on British soil.
