Leeds Man Gets 11 Years for Running Website Promoting Extremism and Violence

Colin McNeil, a 46-year-old from Leeds, has been sentenced to 11 years for his role in hosting a website that disseminated extremist and terrorist content. Operating between 2019 and his arrest in March 2022, McNeil ran a social network and video platform that glorified acts of violence, promoted racism, and encouraged terrorism. The content included videos and documents that not only celebrated mass murderers but also incited violence against specific racial groups. The gravity of McNeil's actions was underscored in Sheffield Crown Court, where Judge Jeremy Richardson KC characterized the material on the websites as "racist, antisemitic, and violent in nature." Among the harrowing materials shared on his platforms was a video of the 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings, which resulted in the deaths of 51 individuals. Additionally, a document uploaded by a neo-Nazi advocate called for the "terrorist killing of non-white people" to incite a race war. Such rhetoric, the court noted, had real-world consequences; one of McNeil's subscribers, an American teenager, went on to commit a racially motivated mass shooting in Buffalo, New York, where 10 people were killed. The court revealed that McNeil's site had attracted a staggering 56,000 subscribers and garnered over 14.6 million views across its videos, indicating a significant reach among those inclined towards extremist ideologies. Commenters on the site included Payton Gendron, the perpetrator of the Buffalo shooting, who expressed agreement with the site's violent rhetoric, highlighting how online platforms can create echo chambers for radicalization. Despite being diagnosed on the autistic spectrum, McNeil was deemed a continuing threat to public safety. Judge Richardson emphasized that the nature of McNeil's offenses represented a "dreadful example of dangerous, white supremacist nonsense" intertwined with terrorist material. By pleading guilty to four counts of distributing a terrorist publication, McNeil accepted responsibility for the harmful impact his actions could have had on society. As concerns over online radicalization and the spread of extremist content continue to mount, McNeil's case serves as a stark reminder of the persistent threat posed by such ideologies in the digital age. The court’s decision to impose an extended sentence reflects the severity of his actions and the need for vigilance in countering the spread of hate and violence, particularly as it manifests in online communities.