Bognor Man Jailed For Racist Hate Crimes & Terrorism Support

A man from Bognor who supported a banned racist terror organisation and who had a Nazi tattoo has been jailed for hate crime offences.

Tobias Powell, of Wythering Close, Bognor Regis, West Sussex, was convicted at Worthing Magistrates' Court, of four counts of "using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour intending thereby to stir up racial hatred" — an offence under section 19 (1) of the Public Order Act 1986. 

He was sent to crown court for sentencing and, on Friday (May 14), the 32-year-old received a sentence of three years' imprisonment from Portsmouth Crown Court.

The court previously heard that Powell published a series of social media posts between July and October 2018, which supported right wing ideology and had racist connotations, including support for proscribed terrorist organisation National Action.

In a Tweet on 6 July 2018, Powell mentioned MP Joanne Cox — who was murdered in June 2016 — saying she was an "alleged open traitor and enemy of the people". 

He also wrote an email to then Prime Minister Theresa May, calling her a "snake" in a message titled "Brexit stitch up" and wrote a letter to MP Nick Gibbs (the MP for Bognor) to share his concerns over Sharia law. 

Powell called for civil war to stop the "ethnic suicide of white people"; talked about "white power"; and shared a picture of his tattoo which contained a Nazi emblem and also shared an image of his dog, in which he suggested it was performing a "Nazi salute". 

Upon further investigation of Powell's devices, it was uncovered that Powell's Apple user ID was "Adolf Hitler" and he was also found to be in possession of numerous pieces of literature about white supremacy. 

Detective Chief Superintendent Kath Barnes QPM, Head of CTPSE, said:

"Powell clearly had toxic views.

"While this was not prosecuted as a terrorism case, the rhetoric shared on social media meant that it was appropriate for specialist officers from Counter Terrorism Policing to carry out the investigation. 

"We are aware of a very fine line between hate speech and terrorism, but I must be clear, showing your support for a terrorist organisation is not acceptable.  

"All the material found as a result of this investigation revealed Powell had a concerning mindset and, as we heard, he even used his dog to try and perpetuate his support for Nazi organisations. 

"This case should serve as a clear message to others that we are committed to tackling all forms of toxic ideology. 

"Groups that do not meet the threshold for proscription are not free to spread hatred, fund terrorist activity or incite violence as they please.

"Ideology which has the potential to threaten public safety and security will not be tolerated and we will look to prosecute those who are involved in such activity."

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."    

The background to this case included the proscription, or banning, of National Action as a terrorist organisation in December 2016 following joint working between government agencies and police.

It was the first group, considered by police to be "right wing", to be proscribed since the British Union of Fascists in 1940.  

Two further related groups were proscribed in 2017, and a third in March 2020.

Also in March 2020, a group calling itself "Sonnenkrieg Division (SKD)" became the second right wing terrorism group to be placed on the list. 

Police reminded the public this weekend that is a criminal offence to be a member or to demonstrate support for these groups.  

Officers added that they intend to monitor the activities of individuals associated with all proscribed groups and will take action regardless of changes to the organisation's name.