A man found with an ‘armoury’ including a crossbow and 14 knives is facing jail after being found guilty of planning a terrorist attack on gay and transgender people.
Alan Edward, 54, amassed a terrifying collection of weaponry at his home in Redding, Stirlingshire.
Edward, described in court as having ‘a neo-Nazi outlook’, was arrested in 2022 when police surrounded and broke into his house.
They found weapons and equipment including a crossbow with telescopic sights, 14 knives, some with Nazi and SS insignia, machetes, a tomahawk, a Samurai sword, knuckledusters, a catapult, an extendable baton and a stun gun.
They also found an air pistol modelled on the ‘James Bond’ Walther PPK, goggles and a respirator, fighting gloves with specially-hardened knuckles, pellets, ball bearings, and hunting tips for crossbow arrows.
Alan Edward, 54, amassed a terrifying collection of weaponry at his home in Redding, Stirlingshire
Prosecutors said this amounted to ‘an armoury’.
He was found to have discussed attacking gay people in a series of ‘incredibly sinister’ WhatsApp messages with an associate and promoted the proscribed extreme right wing group National Action online.
Edward, who had nearly 28,000 followers on social media, denied the Holocaust, mocked the murder of George Floyd and railed against Jews, black people and gays.
The High Court in Stirling heard that Edward possessed and expressed ‘a set of ideals with a neo-Nazi outlook, incorporating notions of white supremacy, the notion of racial purity of whites, racism, anti-semitism, and hatred of homosexuals and transgender people.’
Prosecutor Paul Kearney KC, the advocate depute, said Edward was ‘a man who with clear neo-Nazi ideals preparing for an act of terrorism which would include an ideologically-driven incident of serious violence’.
A jury found Stirling-born Edward, guilty of four charges under the Terrorism Act - inviting support for a proscribed organisation; possession of weaponry, ammunition and equipment for the commission, preparation or instigation of terrorist acts, encouraging terrorism and circulating terrorist publications.
He was also found guilty of racism, anti-semitism, Holocaust denial, and statutory breach of the peace.
He had denied all of these charges.
He was further found guilty of producing and supplying cannabis and possessing the stun gun - which he had offered to admit before the trial began.
The court heard that checks on his WhatsApp account found he had been messaging an associate in nearby Grangemouth - identified only as “Pello” - about a proposed attack on an LBGT group, which met in Falkirk.
In a series of exchanges described by the prosecution as ‘incredibly sinister’, he wrote: ‘They have been pushing their luck for years, now they will pay in blood.’
He added: ‘I hate them all I really do. Hunting time is nearly here, yayyy.
‘We should get masked up and go do a few of them in at their little gay club.’
The court heard that Edward had two accounts on the social media platform Gab.
He came to the attention of counter-terrorism investigators after posting a video glorifying a banned group called National Action.
The video was of a rally held in Darlington, England in 2016, shortly before National Action became the first far-right group to be proscribed in the UK under the Terrorism Act.
Shown in court, the video features demonstrators dressed in black and carrying flags bearing the Nazi ‘Black Sun’ logo.
During a 11-day trial, the court heard that Police Scotland counter terrorism officer Detective Sergeant Campbell Flockhart headed the raid on Edward’s home and interviewed him at Falkirk Police Station.
Later in jail Edward told an associate on the phone to ‘write down’ the name Flockhart, adding, ‘I’m gonna f****** gut that pig.’
In evidence, Edward claimed that he had his weaponry only as a collector, and for ‘outdoor pursuits’.
He claimed that a Black Sun ring he was found wearing when he was arrested was ‘actually an esoteric symbol that represents life force’.
Judge Fiona Tait deferred sentence until October 21st at the High Court in Edinburgh and continued Edward’s remand in custody in the meantime.
She also called for an assessment for a Serious Crime Prevention Order - SCPOs are designed to ensure the ‘lifetime management’ of criminals, including their business dealings, communications and movements once they are released from jail.
She thanked jurors for the ‘care’ they had taken
Detective Chief Superintendent David Ferry, head of Police Scotland’s Counter Terrorism Unit, said: ‘Edward shared extreme racist and homophobic content online with the aim of stirring up hatred and spreading fear and alarm.
‘He also had a clear fascination with weapons and had amassed an array of items which could clearly pose a significant risk to the public.
‘Promoting terrorism and extremism and sharing material that could endanger the public has no place in our society and Police Scotland will not hesitate to investigate this kind of behaviour both on and off-line.
‘We are committed to combatting terrorism and help and support from the public is vital. Anyone with information on a terrorist threat should contact Police Scotland on 101 immediately.’