Stockton boy tipped off to terror police by school after writing extremist views in exam

Kris Jepson reports on the boy who filled notebooks with racist thoughts, filmed himself throwing petrol bombs and chatted online to white supremacist groups

A teenager from Stockton has been handed three-year youth rehabilitation order after admitting a string of terror-related offences.

The 16-year-old was tipped off by a local school that had become concerned after one of its pupils had written extremist views on his physics mock exam paper.

The boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was sentenced on Tuesday 16 July at Leeds Crown Court having previously admitting possessing extreme right wing material and distributing content to others on social media platforms.

During a previous hearing at Leeds Youth Court last month, senior district judge Paul Goldspring, decided he did not have a wide enough range of powers to deal with the case, so committed it to the crown court.

During that hearing, the court heard that, in December 2023, counter-terrorism police attended a family home in Stockton.

They had been tipped off by a school after a pupil had allegedly written extremist views on his physics mock exam paper.

'It's about my son, isn't it?'

The court heard, when the officers arrived at his parents' home on one December morning, the mother of the then 15-year-old boy opened the door and said: "It's about my son, isn't it?"

She then led them to the kitchen, where she had laid out a number of incriminating items, including extremist drawings and far right notes in a red notebook.

One of the drawings was of a gas mask with "6MWE" written over it. The court was told this was linked to far right ideology and meant "six million wasn't enough", which alludes to the Holocaust.

Another drawing showed the Star of David and had "lies" written over it, while another made reference to the banned extreme far right group, Atomwaffen Division.

The former national lead at Counter Terrorism Policing for identifying early signs of radicalisation, Andrew Croasdale, told ITV News that this case highlights how important it is for police to gain the trust of parents and the public when it comes to referring young people who may have been radicalised online.

He said: "You can understand the anxiety that somebody might feel. The idea of referring a loved one to the counter terrorism police, that fear of what’s going to happen next.

"Does that mean somebody’s going to come smashing through our door and arrest us all?

"If you’re external to that organisation, it can feel quite intimidating so it is understandable, but the authorities are there to deliver a proportionate approach, so if the referral is made and actually there is no concern when they’ve assessed it, they will not take it any further forward."

He added that people need to change their mindset, so that they see referrals as a safeguarding measure to protect young people, rather than as something that will criminalise them.

Mr Croasdsale continued: "The earlier you can refer a potential risk, the greater chance to treat it as a safeguarding issue, rather than a criminal issue."

During a previous hearing, the court heard police had discovered 78 online chats the boy had with extremists on his devices.

These included a soundtrack he had added to a video of the Christchurch mosque attacks in New Zealand, which were live streamed by an extreme far-right terrorist when he killed 51 people in 2019.

In another chat, the court heard the boy wrote: "I've been trying to steal Korans from my school to burn."

Police also found a video on the boy's phone of him throwing a petrol bomb.

This caused most concern for the court, because police also discovered documents on his phone, including "The Terrorist's Handbook" and "The Improvised Munitions Handbook", which carry instructions for making weapons and explosives.

Professor Matt Feldman, from York, has given expert evidence on cases like this one, and said social media platforms have a responsibility to tackle online radicalisation to prevent terror attacks.

He told ITV News: "Between the internet, some do it yourself manuals, and some consistent effort that may involve you getting seriously hurt or killed yourself, these things are doable now, whether you’re 45, 25 or 15.

"Until the platforms change, this is a problem we’re going to continue to deal with in a kind of whack-a-mole fashion.

"Unfortunately, the tap is open and until that closes, we might be talking about this again and again and again, until horror strikes, and then we decide this is unacceptable."

The boy's solicitor previously told the court that he had become "isolated at school" and had latched onto a community at “a time of extreme vulnerability”, claiming that although "wholly inappropriate”, it had given him “some sense of belonging".

He said that the boy "no longer" held extremist views.

The boy admitted 10 offences. These included five counts of collecting information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, three counts of disseminating terrorist publications, one offence of criminal damage and one of racially aggravated criminal damage.

He was handed a three-year youth rehabilitation order and a three-year criminal behaviour order.

A spokesperson for Counter Terrorism Policing (CTP) North East said: "As people use the internet more than ever before, CTP North East want to remind people that it is increasingly important to know what to look out for and how to protect our loved ones.

"Exposure to extremist content and groups online can lead them down a dangerous path. The ACT Early website provides information about signs to look out for when someone may be getting drawn into extremism and online security.

"The site also signposts people to support, who to contact if you are worried about a loved one and what help is out there.

"Research shows that family and friends are best placed to spot the signs that someone might be vulnerable to radicalisation.

"If you’re concerned someone close might be being targeted, then act early and share your concerns so the person can get the support they need."

What to do if you are concerned?

Anyone concerned about radicalisation can find more information and advice here.

Call the ACT Early Support Line on 0800 011 3764, in confidence, to share your concerns with specially trained officers. The Support Line is open 9:00am – 5:00pm every day.

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