Bath man sentenced for encouraging right wing terrorism

A 24-year-old man from Bath has been sentenced to seven years for terrorism offences at The Central Criminal Court.

Andrew Dymock was found guilty by a jury of twelve offences contrary to the Terrorism Act including: the encouragement of terrorism, possessing and disseminating terrorist publications and fundraising for terrorism. Dymock was also found guilty of three offences contrary to the Public Order Act 1986 including the possession of racially inflammatory material and publishing written material with the intention of stirring up racial hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation.

He was arrested on 4 December 2020 after an operation, led by Counter Terrorism Policing North East (CTP NE) and supported by Avon and Somerset Police, after he was accused of using social media to promote extreme right-wing terrorism to encourage others to participate in terrorist related activity.

Detective Chief Superintendent Martin Snowden, head of CTP North East, said: “This is another case which shows how harmful online extremism is. Our investigation unearthed a large amount of material that expressed not only extreme right wing views but attempts to stir up wide spread hatred and division in our communities.

“These actions were not simply the result of a young person exploring extreme material for educational purposes. Dymock saw himself as an influencer and spent a lot of time and effort maintaining his online presence, fundraising for his cause and encouraging others.

“Concerningly Dymock never acknowledged his wrongful actions, but fortunately a jury brought him to justice and safeguarded the public in doing so. Dymock represented a threat to our society, not simply because of his mindset but because of the considerable efforts he exerted spreading his ideology and misusing his abilities.”