Dad jailed for two years after calling for mosques to be burned down in Facebook posts

A father-of-three has been jailed for calling for mosques to be burned down in Facebook posts.

Geraint Boyce, 43, has been jailed for two years after pleading guilty to publishing threatening material intending to stir up religious hatred.

Boyce, from Tonypandy in Rhondda Cynon Taf, was sentenced at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court on Thursday, 10 October, over Facebook posts published during the riots earlier this year.

The defendant made and shared a series of comments on 31 July including ones which called for mosques to be burned down.

Alex Orndal, prosecuting, told the court the posts had been made following the murder of three children at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport and the widespread disruption that followed.

Forensic officers at the scene on Hart Street in Southport, Merseyside. Credit: PA Images

He said the comments were made on a public Facebook profile called “Boyce’s Plumbing”, which the defendant had been logged into on arrest.

Other posts included him saying he was “ready for war” and “time to wake the lion to save our children’s future”.

Mr Orndal said he also shared an AI-generated picture of a “large hulk-like figure” chasing people wearing “Islamic religious clothing”.

On arrest, Boyce asked police if it was “because of the online stuff to do with the riots”.

Mr Orndal said: “It is the Crown’s case that these are not mere idle comments but calls to action.”

Nicholas Gedge, appearing for the defence, insisted Boyce was “ashamed of what he did” and that he “wants people to live peacefully together”.

“He held views at the time as a result of what he had seen online, unfortunately," he said.

“He was sympathetic to views that were wrong, which he wholly recognises now.”

Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice Dasilva Aguiar all died following the knife attack in Southport on Monday. Credit: Merseyside Police

Sentencing, Judge Tracey Lloyd-Clarke, the Recorder of Cardiff, said: “A police officer viewed your account and saw that you had posted threatening material intended to stir up religious hatred."

She said the posts showed an intention to “incite serious violence”.

The judge added that it was aggravated because it took place during a “particularly sensitive social climate”, adding: "I have come to the conclusion that appropriate punishment can only be achieved by immediate custody."

Boyce, of Pleasant View, Penrhiwfer, had pleaded guilty to publishing threatening material intending to stir up religious hatred, contrary to Section 29C(1) of the Public Order Act 1986.

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