Brighton neo-Nazi who planned synagogue suicide attack jailed | Crime

A teenager with neo-Nazi views who planned to carry out a suicide attack in a synagogue because he wanted to “scare Jews again” has been jailed for eight years.

Mason Reynolds carried out “very significant planning” for a terrorist attack on the synagogue in Hove, East Sussex, the sentencing judge said.

Reynolds, 19, who was living with his parents in Brighton when he hatched his plan, admitted to having neo-Nazi beliefs but said he did not actually intend to carry out the attack.

Sentencing him on Friday, Judge May said Reynolds had a “surprisingly large and very concerning collection” of terrorism material and she considered him dangerous.

She told him he had a “deep-seated and concentrated interest in far-right ideology and politics”, adding: “Just look at the volume and extreme of views expressed in the documents presented to the court to understand the risk you represent. »

Describing a note found in which he detailed how he was going to carry out the bombing, she said: “There is very significant planning for a terrorist attack… There is a serious risk of harm.” »

During a trial at Winchester Crown Court, the jury was shown detailed drawings of the synagogue on his phone. He noted the times when the synagogue was busiest and marked an entrance, an exit and the location of a security camera.

The court heard he also shared far-right videos and had manuals on building bombs and how to 3D print guns.

He was the administrator of a Telegram channel sharing far-right, anti-Semitic and racist views. He posted that he wanted to “put fear back into the Jews.”

Reynolds also possessed recorded and live-streamed videos of mass terrorist attacks, including those carried out by Brenton Tarrant in Christchurch, New Zealand, and Anders Breivik in Norway.

Reynolds was arrested in June 2023 and his phone and laptop were seized.

Amy Packham, Reynolds' lawyer, said he was an immature young man and argued: “The view of Mason Reynolds and his family is that he would never have taken this action in real life . »

Reynolds' family gasped in the public gallery as he was sentenced.

During his interview with police, Reynolds agreed to write the note, but said he did it to “shut up his friends” because they always blamed him for being “all talk and no action “.

Nick Price, head of the Crown Prosecution Service's Counter Terrorism and Special Crimes Division, said: “Mason Reynolds sought to spread hatred and encourage acts of terrorism. Not only did he have neo-Nazi beliefs, but he wanted to act on them to cause pain and suffering.

Reynolds was convicted by a jury of possessing an article related to the preparation of an act of terrorism against the synagogue.

He pleaded guilty to five counts of possessing material likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, as well as five counts of sharing terrorist publications.

Reynolds showed no emotion as he was given an extended sentence consisting of eight years in custody and a five-year license period.