Man jailed for encouraging terrorism

A man from Leicestershire has been jailed for encouraging terrorism after sharing footage of a terrorist attack.

Edward Griffiths sent footage of the 2019 Christchurch mosque attacks, in which 51 people were killed, to people and said he would love to do what the Christchurch attacker did.

He also said he would like to go on a killing spree and mentioned different people he would like to kill.

He also called the Christchurch attacker a hero on social media.

The offences were committed between November 2021 and June 2022. A warrant was executed in June 2022 and Griffiths was arrested at his home.

He was charged in May last year and was found guilty last month at Birmingham Crown Court of one count of encouragement of terrorism and of two counts of dissemination of a terrorist publication.

He has now been sentenced to four-and-a-half years’ imprisonment.

Detective Inspector Glynn Jehu, from CTPEM, said: “Fifty one people lost their lives in the Christchurch attacks. Spreading messages of extreme hate and violence in the way that Griffiths did is dangerous, reckless and could easily have encouraged others to commit an act of terrorism.

“It was therefore important that we stopped this by acting on information received, investigating the communications fully and bringing Griffiths before the courts."