Imprisoned Neo-Nazi claims he’s the victim of religious discrimination

Wigan Mike - tank-top nazi queen 2009

A Neo-Nazi prisoner jailed for encouraging people to ”destroy all Jews” claims he is the victim of religious discrimination – after being banned from wearing a ‘fascist’ necklace.

Michael Heaton, 43, who is a former leader of the British Freedom Fighters, was jailed last year for posting more than 3,000 hate-filled comments on far-right websites. But the Aryan Strike Force member has complained to prison chiefs at HMP Wymott, Lancs., after he was banned from wearing a Thor’s Hammer pendant.

He claims his rights are being infringed but prison bosses have ruled that the necklace has a ”fascist meaning” and ”Neo-Nazi overtones”.

In a letter sent to inmates’ magazine Inside Time, the ex-English Defence League activist complained he was being singled out for religious discrimination. He said: ”Moslems (sic) can wear hats in prison when nobody else can, Christians are allowed their crosses, so imagine my shock when I enquired about wearing my religious pendant and was refused. I am what is called an Odinist. So that I can feel nearer my god I requested to be allowed to wear my pendant.

”The reply I got was that my application had been refused on the grounds that the pendant ‘looks a little like a Maltese cross, which has a fascist meaning and neo-Nazi overtones’. To say I was shocked at this would be an understatement! Other religious groups are afforded the respect for their religious symbols in prison, so why not me? His (the governor) response was that Thor’s hammer is on the prison ‘banned list’. Surely this cannot be right? Is there anything I can do about it?”

Heaton, serving 30 months in jail for using threatening and abusive language likely to stir up racial hatred, claims that his pendant is an Odinist rather than a Nazi symbol. However, prison staff refused his request to wear it after learning that far-right groups have adopted the symbol as a depiction of aryan supremacy.

A trial at Liverpool Crown Court in June last year heard food packer Heaton, who has a scorpion tattoo on his neck, wanted to ”clear the country of all ethnic minorities”. He posted a series of racist comments on the Aryan Strike Force website including: ”Jews will always be scum and must be destroyed.”

He added: ”I would encourage any religion or race which wants to destroy the Jews, I hate them with a passion.”

Mike's Mummy keeps the nazi's room clean for when he returns from the clink

When cops raided his home in Greater Manchester they found large quantities of Nazi and Hitler memorabilia, a semi–automatic BB gun and a samurai sword.

Judge Stephen Irwin said: ”You wanted to start a race war. You were clearly filled with racial hatred.”

A Prison Service spokesperson said it would not discuss complaints made by individual inmates. He said: ”The provision of religious artefacts in prison is at the discretion of the governor following a thorough risk assessment.”

Norse gods Thor and Odin are worshipped by Odinists and Pagans but their symbols have been hijacked by many white supremacist and Neo-Nazi groups.

Heaton’s co-defendant Trevor Hannington, 58, of Cardiff, was sentenced to two years for six offences.

Small World News Service

White supremacists jailed over 'vicious' online messages

Two white supremacists were jailed today after being convicted of posting violent and vicious racist messages on the internet.

Michael Heaton, 42, and Trevor Hannington, 58, described Jews as "scum" and called for them to be "destroyed". The "proud neo-Nazis" were unanimously cleared of soliciting murder at Liverpool Crown Court yesterday but Heaton was jailed today for 30 months after being convicted of four counts of using threatening, abusive or insulting words likely to stir up racial hatred.

Hannington previously admitted two counts of stirring up racial hatred, two further counts of possessing information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism and disseminating a terrorist publication. He was jailed for two years.

Sentencing, Mr Justice Irwin told Heaton, of Leigh, in Wigan, Greater Manchester, his internet posts were "vicious and repulsive". He added: "You saw yourself as the leader of a potentially significant and active National Socialist group. Your sustained racist rants were intended to bolster that group. You wanted to start a race war. You are clearly filled with racial hatred and also with violent and angry beliefs."

The judge told Heaton his words were of the most "insulting and extreme nature" marked by "violent racism" and said only a significant jail term was acceptable.

Hannington, from Hirwaun, Cardiff, was described as a loner by the judge, who told him: "You are a long standing racist who has never hidden your views, which are violent and vicious in the extreme. You are a lonely man with little in your life. You habitually told lies about a non-existent army career and your knowledge of survival techniques in an attempt to gain status. You are, to some degree, pitiable in this, however repugnant what you said."

Heaton, a packer for a food company, was jailed for 30 months for each of his four offences, to run concurrently. He nodded to the judge and said he understood as he was taken to the cells. He admitted in police interviews he was a founder member of the Aryan Strike Force (ASF), whose goal was "the eradication of ethnic minorities from Britain", the prosecution said.

In one posting on the ASF website, he said of Jews: "They will always be scum, destroy 'em with whatever it takes."

He also wrote: "I would encourage any religion or race that wants to destroy the Jews, I hate them with a passion."

And in another posting he said Jews were leeches and "treacherous fucking scum" and that black people were "less intelligent than other species".

Heaton made more than 3,000 posts on the ASF site between January and June 2008, before he had a "bust-up" with the organisation and created his own, the British Freedom Fighters (BFF). The website changed its name to Legion 88 and then Wolfpack, before it was closed down.

The trial jury, nine of whom returned to court for today's sentencing, were told the number eight refers to the eighth letter in the alphabet, H. So 88 stands for HH, as in Heil Hitler, a common greeting for neo-Nazis. Both men had a number of user names when they posted their comments on the website. Heaton called himself Wigan Mike, and then later Lenny.

David Fish, mitigating for Heaton, said the defendant had been banned from accessing the internet while on bail and was no longer involved in the BFF. He said: "(Heaton) has, in effect, shed the habit and lost interest in putting up these posts."

Hannington admitted he was an administrator for the ASF, Legion 88 and Wolfpack websites and gave himself the user names Fist, Lee 88 and Paul. He pleaded guilty to inciting racial hatred with internet posts stating his beliefs that Jews were "parasites feeding on others" and "utterly evil sub-beings". The self-employed builder also posted the message: "Kill the Jew, Kill the Jew, Burn down a synagogue today! Burn the scum."

Hannington admitted owning the Anarchist's Cookbook, Kitchen Complete and The Terrorist Encyclopaedia, all of which are considered useful tools to someone preparing or committing an act of terrorism. He also admitted publishing a post on the internet with instructions on how to make a flame thrower out of a water pistol.

Richard Mansell QC, for Hannington, said: "There is a significant element of the fantasist about him and the jury's verdict accepts the posts were made without a great deal of thought but are, nevertheless, extremely offensive. Having had the terror books he never made any effort to produce such items or seek components for them. He has reflected on the language he used and his conduct and he also recognises he has problems with alcohol and anger management."

Hannington showed no emotion as he was jailed for a total of two years for all his offences. As he was convicted under the Terrorism Act he must inform the police of his home address for the next 10 years.

Independent

Convictions point to rise of far right extremism

Today's convictions of a 42-year-old food packer and a 59-year-old builder on inciting racial hatred brings to 16 the number of convictions connected to far right extremism in the past two years...


Trevor Hannington, from South Wales, and Michael Heaton, from Lancashire, ran their own far right organisation which promised street action to help rid the country of minority communities.

Their Aryan Strike Force boasted 350 members. Its website had tens of thousands of postings, all messages of hate like urging the destruction of Jews, describing them as treacherous scum. There were references to "chopping niggers legs off" and "kill the jew, burn down a synagogue today". Heaton was found guilty on four charges, while Hannington admitted to four terrorism charges including distributing instructions on how to turn a water pistol into a flamethrower. Both were both found not guilty of soliciting to murder.

Dr Matthew Feldman, who runs the UK's only research unit on new media and domestic extremism at Northampton University, was the prosecution's key witness in this case. He says "These are neo-Nazis, pure and simple, and consider themselves really the most extreme versions of this ideological neo-Nazism that is new. We have had some evidence, I believe, of activists from the ASF appearing on videos at the English Defence League marches and so forth."

Dr Feldman believes this recent string of convictions of "lone wolf" cases and the creation of the English Defence League point to a resurgence of far right extremism. He said: "In terms of what we might call small cell or lone wolf terrorists cases since 2008, but also other events in 2008 such as the successful election of two British National Party MEPs in the Yorkshire, Humber area, and in 2009 the creation of the English Defence League on the back of those protests by some radical Islamism groups against the return of Anglican soldiers. So I think there is a confluence of factors that do point to a resurgence in the far right."

The two convicted today actually turned up at several of the EDL rallies and used their website to praise the EDL's actions. Yet the EDL denies any links to these extremists organisation. We asked for an interview with its organisers so we could put all our evidence to them. They declined.

Does that mean EDL is infiltrated with those with a much more extreme agenda intent on more than just glorified football style violence? Police who monitor these events say no. Assistant Chief Constable Anton Setchell, national coordinator for domestic extremism, told Channel 4 News that "we have seen some individuals from the far right on the margins of EDL organised events but these are only one or two individuals. We have found no strong links between extreme groups like the Aryan Strike Force and the EDL."

Yet today's guilty verdicts bring to 16 the total number of far right extremists who have been convicted over the past two years. Among them were father and son Ian and Nicky Davison who were sent to prison last month for possessing the poison Ricin and for making and detonating pipe bombs. They were also co-founders of the Aryan Strike Force.

Dr Feldman says: "in groups like the ASF successor organisations we are seeing a group numbering in the few hundreds probably at the maximum. That's a few hundred too many because these are not people who are far right activists for the BNP and knocking doors. These are people who may very well be considering a future as we saw in the Davison case undertaking terrorists.

In fact Heaton stated publically that as part of a "rites of passage" to join, potential recruits had to carry out a serious op, meaning a violent racist attack.

The Institute for Race Relations is about to publish a report, which Channel 4 News has had exclusive access to, mapping out 600 serious racist attacks in the UK last year. Many have taken place in towns which have had influxes of a migrant workforce or asylum seekers. But it also hints at a correlation between attacks and pockets of extremism.

We found that of the 16 extremist convictions since 2008, two thirds come from towns which form a corridor across the north of England: Penwortham, south of Preston, to Leigh, west of Manchester, to Batley, to Selby, to Goole, to Grimsby, then further north to Elsdon and Durham. Privately, police sources have confirmed to us that their intelligence suggests the same. They admit there are some dangerous individuals, but overall the threat from right wing extremists has hardly changed since the days of the nail bomber David Copeland, who killed three and seriously injured 79 people in three attacks, the worst at Soho's Admiral Duncan Pub in 1999. It was the last time white supremacists were said to behind a bomb attack in the UK.

Those monitoring far right extremists attribute the recent string of convictions to a combination of "good police work", community relations and luck, rather than an increased threat. But they say what has changed is their profile boosted by a combination of the numerous convictions and the tenor of EDL marches.

Channel 4 News

Thanks to NewsHound for the heads-up.

Pair are 'proud to be neo-Nazis'

Michael Heaton (circled) at one of the many 'not nazi at all' EDL rallies (Image: PMcC)

Two men "made it their life's work" to spread racist messages and encourage others to help them achieve their goal of "the eradication of ethnic minorities from Britain", a court heard today.

Michael Heaton, 42, and Trevor Hannington, 58, both "proud" neo-Nazis, are accused at Liverpool Crown Court of urging people to kill Jews.

Andrew Edis QC, prosecuting said: "Each of these men is proud to call himself a National Socialist, or a neo-Nazi in other language. Each is a member of an organisation called the Aryan Strike Force, whose goal it is to clear the country of all ethnic minorities, as they say, whatever it takes."

Both men deny that postings they made on a right-wing website solicited others to murder. Heaton is standing trial over four comments he made on the Aryan Strike Force website (ASF) between January and April 2008.

The prosecution argue that his comments about Jews - "...they will always be scum, destroy 'em with whatever it takes", and "I would encourage any religion or race that wants to destroy the Jews, I hate them with a passion..." - encourage their murder, or at least stir up racial hatred. In one post he wrote that black people are "less intelligent than other species", and in another that Jews are leeches and "treacherous fucking scum".

Hannington denies one count of soliciting to murder with the post: "Kill the Jew, Kill the Jew, Burn down a synagogue today!... Burn the scum...".

Mr Edis told the jury of seven men and five women there was no question over whether the defendants made the postings.

"That is undisputed," he said, referring to Hannington's post. "It's what he wanted to achieve when he put that on a forum on a website that matters."

The panel was told that Hannington has already pleaded guilty to possessing information which may be useful to terrorists. On Wednesday he admitted to owning the Anarchist's Cookbook, Kitchen Complete and The Terrorist Encyclopaedia, all of which are considered useful tools to someone preparing or committing an act of terrorism.

He pleaded guilty to inciting racial hatred with internet posts stating his beliefs that Jews were "parasites feeding on others" and "utterly evil sub-beings". He also admitted publishing a post on the internet with instructions on how to make a flame thrower out of a water pistol. Mr Edis said the guilty pleas should not persuade the jury that he is guilty of the count he stands trial over, but that it demonstrates he is "to be taken seriously", and has the knowledge of how to follow his comments through into practice.

The prosecutor said Heaton made more than 3,000 posts on the ASF website between January and June 2008, before he had a "bust-up" with the organisation and created his own, The British Freedom Fighters. The website changed its name to Legion 88 and then Wolfpack, before it was closed down.

Mr Edis explained that the number 8 refers to the eighth letter in the alphabet, H. So 88 stands for HH, as in Heil Hitler, a common greeting for neo-Nazis. Both men used a number of monikers when they posted their comments on the website. Heaton called himself Wigan Mike, and then later Lenny. Hannington gave himself the names Fist, Lee 88 and Paul.

The prosecutor said: "These are the descriptions they gave themselves. It's how they wish to be named."

The pair were in regular contact over the internet with two men who have now been convicted of terrorism charges, including possessing the deadly poison ricin, the court heard. Jurors were shown chatroom conversations between them and fellow racists who called themselves Sweeney and Thorburn. Sweeney was the moniker for Ian Davison, who set up the ASF website, and is now in prison. Thorburn is the name used by his son, Nicky Davison, now serving time in a young offenders' institution.

Mr Edis told the jurors they would be shown more logs of internet chat conversations between both men and their associates during the trial.

The prosecutor briefly showed the panel a collection of photographs found on Heaton's computer, as well as a video showing him training in a form of martial art. He is seen kicking a training partner, and Mr Edis said more videos of him teaching his skills to others will be shown. This, he said, shows he is not simply preoccupied by posting racist material on the internet, but is active in spreading his beliefs to other.

The trial continues.

Independent

Neo-Nazis face charges of "soliciting murder" in Liverpool

Two neo-Nazi member of the extremist English Defence League have appeared in court accused of soliciting the hate killings of Jews.

Trevor Hannington, 58, and Michael Heaton, 42, face a total of seven counts of "soliciting to commit murder", and "using threatening or abusive language likely to stir up racial hatred".

At the beginning of the hearing at Liverpool Crown Court, stocky shaven-headed Hannington entered guilty pleas on five further charges which he had previously denied. These included posting vile, racist slurs on a website for violent extremists The Aryan Strike Force which read "Jews are parasites feeding off others" and "Jews will always be scum".

He also admitted posting copies of notorious bomb-making handbooks associated with terrorism on the website, which he administered, known as the "Anarchists Cookbook" and the "Terrorism Encyclopaedia". Wearing a plain white t-shirt, Hannington, of South Wales, scowled in the dock as he admitted a final charge of circulating instructions for constructing a flamethrower out of a water pistol.

In a five hour hearing, prosecuting counsel Andrew Edis QC, told the court that co-defendant Michael Heaton had posted a string of threatening messages on the Aryan Strike Force website, which he ran with Hannington. Mr Edis told the court that Hannington's obscene postings included messages that said:" Kill the Jew, Kill the Jew! Burn down the synagogue. Burn the scum."

Mr Edis described Heaton's alleged hate-filled postings. They are said to include: "Jews will always be scum and must be destroyed" and "I would encourage any religion or race which wants to destroy the Jews, I hate them with a passion".

A further racist tirade is said to have said: "Black people have high sex drives and are more aggressive than all other species".

Heaton, of Manchester, denies soliciting to murder, and stood stony-faced in the dock sporting a large black scorpion tattoo on his neck. His co-defendant, Hannington, also denies a similar charge of soliciting to murder. The offences are said to have happened in January and April 2008.

After the seven remaining charges were read out, Judge Stephen Irwin QC reminded the jury, of seven men and five women, to put all prejudices aside. He had earlier rejected defence requests that jurors should declare their ethnic and religious backgrounds before being sworn-in. Reporting restrictions on publication of the addresses of the accused remain in place, for the protection of members of their families.

Trevor Hannington was remanded in custody. Michael Heaton had his bail renewed with the condition that he is barred from contacting members of the Aryan Strike Force or English Defence League. The trial commences at 10am on Friday.

Click Liverpool

County Durham terror plot father and son are jailed

Ian (left) and Nicky Davison

A neo-Nazi who made the poison ricin and plotted to overthrow the government has been jailed for 10 years

Police found the deadly chemical when they raided Ian Davison's home in Burnopfield, County Durham, last June. The 41-year-old admitted producing a chemical weapon, preparing for acts of terrorism and having terror handbooks. His son Nicky, 19, who was convicted of possessing material useful for acts of terror, was detained for two years at a young offenders' institution.

The pair, who had earlier been tried separately at Newcastle Crown Court, set up and ran the Aryan Strike Force (ASF) website.

Ian Davison created ricin at his home in 2006 or early 2007, Andrew Edis QC, prosecuting, said. It was found when police raided the property in June last year and is now stored at the UK's Porton Down chemical weapons centre. The court heard that Ian Davison researched how to make the killer chemical and then followed instructions, having bought its easily-sourced ingredients.

Passing sentence, Judge John Milford told the father: "A particularly unpleasant aggravating feature of this case is that you corrupted your son."

Mr Edis said: "He was a leading member of the ASF which was a neo-Nazi organisation dedicated to using violence. Its slogan was 'Whatever it takes'. The purpose of the violence was the creation of an international Aryan group which would establish white supremacy in 'white' countries. They were followers of the ideology of Adolf Hitler, who they revered, and whose work Mein Kampf was among many available on their website."

Mr Edis said the ASF had about 350 members recruited via the internet, though not all were active. Other alleged members will face trial later this year.

Mr Edis said: "This defendant intended to perpetrate acts of terrorism. The ricin which he made would be used in pursuit of the cause espoused by the group."

The Crown said the group had not picked out particular targets, but had run a training camp in Cumbria and made promotional films. The ASF, also known as the Wolf Pack, aimed to overthrow "Zionist" governments and considered itself to be the UK's most right-wing group. Davison Snr was in contact with a Nazi in Serbia and the pair discussed poisoning water supplies used by Muslims, Mr Edis said. Davison Snr possessed many copies of terror guidebooks such as the Anarchist's Cookbook and made them available for download.

Toby Hedworth QC, defending, said a psychological report showed Davison Snr was a "super-wimp not a savage" who had a "fragile ego".

Peter Carter QC, for Davison Jnr, said his client was of previous good character and had been corrupted by his father. He has now thrown away any chance of an Army career, the court heard. The judge said he accepted the son had been influenced by his father.

"But you were actively in the website and expressed on it the same vile, racist views as your father," he said. "I accept you knew nothing of the ricin."

Judge Milford also expressed surprise that the Anarchist's Cookbook was still available to buy on the Amazon website and asked the authorities to look into it.

Outside court, Det Supt Neil Malkin, of Durham Police, said he wanted terror manuals removed from the internet.

"This is a landmark case and will bring the attention of the authorities at a national level to the need to restrict these documents," he said.

He said just downloading the Anarchist's Cookbook from the internet was an offence. He added: "Ian Davison was only one step away from producing a terrorist event."

The Crown Prosecution Service said Ian Davison was the first man in England and Wales to be convicted of a terrorism-related offence involving ricin. Counter terrorism division lawyer Stuart Laidlaw said the pair were "Nazi zealots" who believed in white supremacy and revered Adolf Hitler. He said: "They hated minority ethnic groups, be they black, Asian, Muslim or Jewish."

He added that 10 fatal doses of ricin were found in Ian Davison's house, all of which were made by him.

BBC

White supremacist and son await sentence

A white supremacist who created deadly ricin will be sentenced along with his racist son today

Police said former pub DJ Ian Davison, 41, was plotting to use the killer chemical which was found in a jam jar in his kitchen when officers raided. He ran a group of internet extremists known as the Aryan Strike Force with his 19-year-old son Nicky, who was convicted last month of preparing for acts of terrorism by downloading the guidebooks the Anarchist's Cookbook and The Poor Man's James Bond.

The teenager, of Grampian Way, Annfield Plain, County Durham, claimed he became involved in white supremacy to please his racist father. A jury took 50 minutes to convict him at Newcastle Crown Court.

Davison Snr, of Myrtle Grove, Burnopfield, County Durham, had already admitted producing a chemical weapon, preparing for acts of terrorism and three counts relating to possessing the terror handbooks. Ricin is extracted from the castor bean and exposure to small quantities can be fatal. The US Centre for Disease Control suggested that as little as 500mg - about half a grain of rice - could be lethal if injected or inhaled, and has no known antidote.

The father and son were both remanded in custody ahead of their sentencing at Newcastle Crown Court.

After Davison Jnr's conviction, Detective Superintendent Neil Malkin said: "I have no understanding of their intended target. What I do know is the nature of the organisation and what it had pulled together in terms of the ricin, pipe bombs and the manuals can only give me concerns that the next step was to take it to the streets."

The Aryan Strike Force was in the early stages of preparation when it was raided last summer, and planned paramilitary operations which aimed to topple the "Zionist" government. Members believed themselves to be the most racist group in Britain.

Independent

Pictures of UK neo-Nazi plotters released

Ian Davison (left) and son Nicky

Pictures of the father and son neo-Nazis involved in a UK right-wing plot to kill Muslims, blacks and Jews, have been released.

Hate mob leader Ian Davison, 41, planned to use the deadly poison ricin and recruited hundreds of followers to his Nazi Aryan Strike Force. His son Nicky, 19, had set up a computer network of white supremacist extremists around the world.

Members of the group planned to fight against what they called the "Zionist-occupied government" and believed Britain had been taken over by Jews. A police raid at the Davisons’ home on Grampian Way, Annfield Plain, Co Durham in England, found copies of paramilitary manuals 'The Poor Man’s James Bond' and the 'Anarchist’s Cookbook' on two computers.

Davison Jnr, a former milkman’s assistant, denied any knowledge of the documents and claimed a “mischievous” friend downloaded them. But he was convicted on Friday of three counts of possessing information useful in committing or preparing terror acts. Former pub DJ Davison Snr previously admitted six charges, including producing deadly ricin, one of the world’s most dangerous substances. They will be sentenced at Newcastle Crown Court on May 14.

Judge John Milford remanded Davison in custody and he was taken away after hugging his weeping mother in the public gallery.

The racist gang was fully intending to use the deadly ricin, said the officer leading the investigation, Detective Superintendent Neil Malkin.

“I have no understanding of their intended target,” he said. “What I do know is the nature of the organisation and what it had pulled together in terms of the ricin, pipe bombs and the manuals can only give me concerns that the next step was to take it to the streets.”

He said the deadly substance was found in a sealed jar and was in a usable state. It has now been taken to the UK’s chemical weapons centre at Porton Down.

Mr Malkin said the father was the head of the organisation which had “abhorrent views” towards “ethnic minorities and Jewish people”. But the son was old enough to know his own mind, the detective said.

“He lived in an atmosphere of extreme right-wing white supremacist neo-Nazi rhetoric and he has embraced that.”

Mr Malkin said others investigated as part of the inquiry will face prosecution later this year.

Evening Echo

County Durham teenager convicted of terror plot

A teenage white supremacist from County Durham has been found guilty of terrorism offences.

Nicky Davison, 19, was convicted of three separate charges of possessing records useful in committing or preparing acts of terrorism.
Newcastle Crown Court heard he was part of a white supremacist group called the Aryan Strike Force, with his father.
Terror manuals were found on computers at the home he shared with his mother in Annfield Plain last June.

The teenager's father, Ian Davison, has already admitted preparing for acts of terrorism and producing a chemical weapon, the deadly poison ricin, one of the world's most dangerous substances.
The pair will be sentenced together.

The court heard Nicky Davison helped his father administer the Aryan Strike Force website, which aimed to carry out terrorist operations and overthrow the government.
The former milkman's assistant, of Grampian Way, Annfield Plain, was a founder member of the web group set up by his 41-year-old father.

The jury at Newcastle Crown Court took 50 minutes to convict the teenager after hearing the group planned to fight against what it called the Zionist Occupied Government and believed the state had been taken over by Jews.
Racist father

Jurors heard a police raid at the home he shared with his mother and younger brother found copies of The Poor Man's James Bond and the Anarchist's Cookbook on two computers.

Nicky Davison denied any knowledge of the documents and the court was told a "mischievous" friend had downloaded them.
In his defence, Davison said he joined the group to please his racist father.
After the verdict, Det Supt Neil Malkin of Durham Police said: "Violent extremism will not be tolerated.

"The hard work carried out by officers to collect the wealth of evidence that has helped secure this conviction demonstrates Durham Constabulary's determination to disrupt extreme right-wing activity in all its forms.
"This has been a complex case requiring careful deliberation of the evidence by the jury over a period of three weeks and the successful conviction of Nicky Davison underlines the quality of the investigation."

BBC News

White supremacist group 'considered itself most racist'

A white supremacist group considered itself the most racist and extreme neo-Nazi movement in Britain, a court heard today. Members of the Aryan Strike Force believed groups like the notorious far-right Combat 18 and Blood and Honour did "fuck all" and were more interested in raising money than fighting "scum".

The shocking revelation emerged during the trial of ex-milkman's assistant Nicky Davison, 19, who is charged with possessing terrorism manuals.

Newcastle Crown Court has already heard that the teenager was one of the founders of the Aryan Strike Force, an online far-right group set up by his father, Ian. Ian Davison, 41, a former pub DJ, has already admitted six charges related to this case, including producing ricin, one of the world's deadliest substances. The aim of the group was to carry out "ops" and overthrow the Government, which it believed had been taken over by the ZOG - the Zionist Occupied Government.

After studying videos, messages posted online and logs of internet chat, Dr Matthew Feldman, a lecturer at the University of Northampton, said the Aryan Strike Force considered itself the most extreme right-wing group in Britain.

"Some of these groups like Blood and Honour and Combat 18 are seen as not being 'active' enough," Dr Feldman, an expert in the ideology of post-war fascism and neo-Nazism, told the jury. "Aryan Strike Force would regard itself as the pinnacle and the most uncompromising form of neo-Nazis groups available in the UK. The Aryan Strike Force regarded itself as the most active, rejectionist and unwilling to compromise on its principles.

"The other movements would be more concerned about finances rather than focusing on direct action or revolutionary tactics. It was an unmistakable example of neo-Nazis in Britain and this permutation is the most overtly hostile. Legion88, the Aryan Strike Force and WolfPack represented the most aggressive and dangerous form of neo-Nazism. One, moreover, which seems to be on the most extreme form of (the) neo-Nazi spectrum, and this group may be considered an exemplar of violent revolutionary neo-Nazism."

Earlier today, jurors were read messages Davison had posted on online forums and heard he was prepared to "die fighting" for his cause. Andrew Edis QC, prosecuting, said Davison wrote: "I know my aims. I don't care if I am fighting a unwinnable battle. I would rather die fighting than let the scum of the earth walk over us."

Davison wrote of "taking control of national white countries by any means necessary and overthrow and see the downfall of the ZOG".

The court heard yesterday that in June last year police discovered copies of The Poor Man's James Bond and The Anarchist's Cookbook on computers at the home Davison shared with his mother and younger brothers and sisters in County Durham. Davison, of Grampian Way, Annfield Plain, denies three charges of possessing a record containing information useful in committing or preparing acts of terrorism.

Last month his father, of Myrtle Grove, Burnopfield, County Durham, admitted preparing for acts of terrorism and producing a chemical weapon from June 1 to 3 last year. He also admitted three charges of possessing a record containing information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing acts of terrorism relating to electronic copies of The Anarchist's Cookbook, the Mujahideen Explosives Handbook and Kitchen Complete on June 2. He will be sentenced at the conclusion of his son's trial.

Ricin is a toxin that is extracted from the castor bean and exposure to small quantities can be fatal. The US Centre for Disease Control suggests as little as 500 micrograms - about half a grain of sand - of the substance can be lethal if injected or inhaled. It has no known antidote.

Independent

Four investigated over neo-Nazi links

Two suspected neo-Nazis due to appear in court tomorrow are alleged to belong to the same extreme right wing organisation as a County Durham father and son arrested on terrorism charges.

Trevor Hannington, 58, and Michael Heaton, 42, are accused of being “administrators” of the Aryan Strike Force website and used wall posts to encourage others to murder Jews. They are due before the Old Bailey tomorrow facing a string of terrorism and public order offences dating back to January 2008. Also alleged to have links to the Aryan Strike Force are former pub DJ Ian Davison, 41, and his son Nicky, 18.

Ian Davison was brought before City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London last June accused of stashing deadly poison and explosives at his North East home. He was arrested along with Nicky, of Grampian Place, Annfield Plain, near Stanley, on June 2, when counter-terrorism detectives raided his home on Myrtle Grove, Burnopfield, County Durham. He is currently remanded in custody charged with offences under the Terrorism Act including acquiring a quantity of the toxin ricin, explosives and other manuals and disseminated them to others, encouraging others to commit acts of terrorism.

He also faces two offences of possessing a record containing information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism. One of those charges relates to a manual containing information and instructions on the use or production of firearms, explosives and chemicals, the other relates to information and instructions on the use or production of explosive substances and related items. He is also accused of an offence under the Chemical Weapons Act for possessing the ricin, and is due back in court in April.

Nicky Davison appeared in the same court accused of a single terrorist offence. He was released on bail and is understood to have to returned to his County Durham home. His bail conditions include a ban on contacting members of the Aryan Strike Force.

Hannington and Heaton are accused of writing threatening, abusive or insulting comments about Jews and black people. The pair were arrested on December 9. Jobless Hannington, from Cardiff, faces three charges under terrorism laws for possession of records containing information that could be used in preparing or committing acts of terrorism. He faces a further charge of disseminating information on his website informing others how to construct a flame thrower out of a water pistol.

Factory worker Heaton, from Wigan, Lancashire, allegedly stopped his alliance with the Aryan Strike Force last year. He faces no terrorism charges but is charged with two counts in relation to solicitation to murder and two counts of using threatening internet posts to stir up racial hatred.

Last month at City of Westminster Magistrates Court in London District Judge Daphne Wickham released Heaton on bail while Hannington was remanded in custody to appear at the Old Bailey tomorrow.

Journal Live

Police get extra time to question father of terror suspect

Police have been granted a further seven days to question the father of a suspected member of a white supremacist group which has alleged links to Northern Ireland paramilitary “Mad Dog” Johnny Adair.

Ian Davison, 41, a wagon driver and former pub DJ who was arrested under the Terrorism Act 2000, remains in custody at a West Yorkshire Police Station following a successful application by Durham Police to a judge in chambers. Police wearing protective clothing continued to search Davison’s terraced home in Myrtle Grove, Burnopfield, near Stanley, County Durham, yesterday after what police believe to be traces of the deadly poison ricin were found in a jam jar in a kitchen cupboard.

Meanwhile Davison’s son Nicky, 18, a milkman who was charged under Section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000, was bailed to return to his home in Grampian Way, Annfield Plain, Stanley, a property he shares with his mother and three siblings. Bail conditions included that he observes an overnight curfew, reports to his local police station and wears an electronic tag. The conditions also ban him from contacting his father, using a mobile phone, the internet or a camera, or contacting members of a racist group known as the Aryan Strike Force.

The Aryan Strike Force has close links to the Racial Volunteer Force, which describes itself on its website as “an international militant pro-white organisation”. The Racial Volunteer Force (RVF) is described on Wikipedia, the internet encyclopedia, as “a violent splinter group of the British neo-Nazi group Combat 18 with close ties to far right paramilitary group, British Freedom Fighters. The RVF has also maintained links with Ulster loyalism and it has been claimed that supporters of the group were involved in sheltering the notorious Johnny Adair in Bolton, Greater Manchester.”

Belfast-born Adair, a feared former paramilitary boss, fled to the British mainland on release from prison in Northern Ireland, where he had been serving a 16-year sentence for directing a campaign of terror in Belfast. Adair has been warned that he was on the hit-list of the Ulster Defence Organisation (UDA), a loyalist paramilitary organisation, after an internal feud which saw Adair’s family and allies driven out of Belfast.

Combat 18 was formed in the early 1990s from a British National Party breakaway group composed largely of former members of the party’s security team who were disillusioned with its change of policies and image and increasing focus on electoral politics.

Combat 18’s involvement has been suspected in numerous deaths of immigrants and other members involved in a bloody civil war inside the group. The “18” in its name is commonly used by neo-Nazi groups, and is derived from the initials of Adolf Hitler; A and H are the first and eighth letters of the Latin alphabet.

Anindya Bhattacharyya of the campaigning organisation Unite Against Fascism, said the Aryan Strike Force was a group he had not come across, but added: “There are always far-right splinter groups forming amongst people disaffected by the British National Party’s (BNP) attempts to adopt a cloak of respectability. This sounds like one of these. There are always far-right splinter groups forming amongst people disaffected by the (BNP).”

Journal Live