Neo-Nazi ring who amassed 200 weapons ‘were plotting escalating attacks’

Three far-right extremists arrested while plotting terror attacks had been planning a series of ‘escalating’ atrocities, a court has heard.

Christopher Ringrose, 34, Marco Pitzettu, 25, and Brogan Stewart, 25, formed an online hate group where they styled themselves as Nazi officers and began discussing an attack on an Islamic education cenre in Leeds.

Between them they massed more than 200 weapons including machetes, swords, crossbows and an illegal stun gun, a court heard.

Ringrose had also 3D-printed most of the components to build a semi-automatic firearm and was trying to get the remaining parts.

The trio were convicted of terror offences in May after a nine-week trial which heard how they idolised Adolf Hitler and the Nazis, shared their hatred for ethnic and religious minorities, and glorified mass murderers.

In the first half of a two-day sentencing hearing concluding today, prosecutors said the attack in Leeds was to be the ‘first of a number of operations escalating in nature’.

Counter-terror police, who infiltrated the online group using undercover officers, believe the trio could have gone on to target mosques, synagogues and other religious sites.

The court heard yesterday that they had an ‘intention to commit acts of extremism which involved killing of multiple victims’.

Jonathan Sandiford KC said: ‘They justified, encouraged and glorified serious violence against and killing of persons of other races (who were) effectively seen as inferior and unworthy of human dignity or indeed life.

‘On more than one occasion each of the defendants expressed hatred for and desire and willingness to engage in serious violence against people they perceived as enemies of their cause.’

Mr Sandiford said the defendants had styled themselves as an armed military group and that by early 2024, when they were arrested, they were seeking more recruits.

Stewart had a leading role and appointed the other two as ‘armourers’, encouraging them to make or acquire deadly firearms and explosives, though it’s believed they never met in person.

The court previously heard how he set up the group with him as ‘Fuhrer’, a reference to Hitler’s title as leader.

Recruits were sent questions such as: ‘What is your opinion on the historic paramilitary force, the SS?’ and ‘Out of so many different options, who would you say you hold most of your hatred for – kikes, n******, shitskins, fags etc and why’.

Stewart told an undercover officer they needed to set up a ‘new einsatzgruppe’ – a reference to Hitler’s SS death squad – and sent him a ‘standard uniform’ which included a Nazi-style helmet, a balaclava and a Swastika armband.

In exchanges with the officer he also discussed torturing a Muslim leader using an ‘information extraction kit’ he had.

When discussing potential targets, Stewart sent the officer details of the Islamic education centre including a Google Maps image.

The court heard he told him: ‘It depends how far we are willing to go. It could be a beating with batons and bats or something more serious.’

The three men were arrested when security services believed an attack was imminent.

Sultana Tafadar KC, mitigating for Stewart, said many of the messages referred to by the prosecution were ‘pure fantasy’.

She said the defendant had experienced abuse and neglect as a child and had ‘unprocessed trauma’.

In mitigation for Pitzettu, the court heard he had shown a positive outlook and attitude in prison.

Ringrose was said to have withdrawn from the group before they were arrested.

Ringrose, of Cannock, Staffordshire, Pitzettu, of Mickleover, Derbyshire, and Stewart, of Tingley, Wakefield, West Yorkshire, will be sentenced later on Friday for one charge of preparing acts of terrorism and multiple charges of collecting information likely to be useful to a person preparing or committing an act of terrorism.

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