Man who commented online "Britain needs 650 Thomas Mairs" sentenced for posting extremist content

A far-right extremist who posted offensive content on social media and glorified the murderer of Jo Cox MP has been jailed for two years and eight months. 

Kieran Turner was jailed on Thursday, 8 February.

Kieran Turner, from Earby, Lancashire, began his offending in 2016 when he opened an account on alternative social media platform GAB.

In 2019, Turner commented “Britain needs 650 Thomas Mairs” in reference to Thomas Mair who murdered Jo Cox MP in 2016 and the number of MPs who sit in the House of Commons.

Between 2016 and 2020, Turner, 36, posted and re-shared material expressing antisemitic, transphobic, misogynistic, homophobic, racist and islamophobic views.

He also used video sharing platform ‘Bitchute’ and Facebook to post offensive content that included live-streamed video footage of the 15 March 2019 terrorist attack – the day of the Christchurch mosque shootings.

He was arrested on 9 November 2021 by Lancashire Police and a Samsung tablet, on which the GAB account was present, was found under his bed.

Turner was sentenced yesterday (Thursday, 8 February 2024) at Manchester Crown Court to two years and eight months in custody. He had previously pleaded guilty to 10 counts - one count of encouraging terrorism, two counts of disseminating terrorist publications and seven counts of stirring up racial hatred.

Nick Price, Head of the CPS Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, said: “Kieran Turner’s extreme views and his relentless attempts to stir up hatred have no place in society.

“His online posts and comments were abhorrent and far-right extremists such as Turner have the potential to threaten public safety and security.

“The CPS will always seek to prosecute such appalling online criminal behaviour, and it is only right that Turner has been sentenced today for his crimes.”