A student terrorist who composed a step-by-step guide to constructing bombs for 'outcasts and individuals with low social status' has been imprisoned for 13 years.
Jacob Graham, 20, who considered the American terrorist US terrorist Theodore ‘the Unabomber’ Kaczynski his ‘idol’, planned to assassinate politicians and initiate a 'rebellion'.
Motivated by a dislike for the government and ‘environmental concerns’, Graham described himself as the ‘first UK home-grown terrorist’.
The Hugh Baird College student recorded numerous video messages under the alias ‘Desto the Destroyer’ and compiled an ‘online arsenal’ on his computer of information on firearms and explosives.
His ‘Freedom Encyclopedia’ contained details on creating pipe, nail, and car bombs, as well as a submachine gun using everyday items, which he distributed to his contacts on Telegram and Discord.
And he devised this ‘rampage’ entirely from his bedroom at his mum’s house in Norris Green, Liverpool, between May 2022 and May 2023, a jury heard.
He was acquitted of plotting an assault but found guilty of owning and distributing terrorist material last month after a five-week trial at Manchester Crown Court.
Manchester Crown Court had previously been informed how Graham conducted chemical experiments in a woodland near his house six weeks before his arrest in May last year.
When searching the residence of the computer science student, authorities discovered a stockpile of chemicals and a 3D printer capable of producing firearm components for assembly at home.
Graham wrote in the opening paragraph of his ‘Freedom Encyclopedia’ that the document was written for ‘misfits, social nobodies, Anarchists and Terrorists’.
During the trial, the then-teenager argued that his activities were merely ‘escapism and fantasy’.
Justice Goose stated that Graham seemed like nothing more than an ‘ordinary young man, with an interest in fireworks, military and outdoor pursuits’.
But he added: ‘In reality, you are a dangerous young man, you described yourself as the first UK home-grown terrorist.
‘You searched the internet for information and files that explained how to make explosives, weapons and ammunition.
‘You offered yourself as a very knowledgeable and experienced terrorist. I am satisfied, you are a dangerous offender.
‘There is significant risk to members of the public of serious harm by you committing serious, specified terrorist offences.’
The defendant was jailed for 13 years with a five-year extended licence and must also keep police in the know of his whereabouts for the next 30 years.
Graham showed no emotion but, as he walked from the dock to the cells, she flashed his mother a smile in the public gallery.
She burst into tears.
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