Boy’s diary extracts revealed ‘twisted ideology’

DURING THE trial, jurors heard extracts from the older boy’s diary which outlined his “twisted ideology”.

The inside cover of the book, which was recovered from the teenager’s home in October 2017, reads: “Sorry if this is found I have committed one of the worst atrocities in British history or I killed myself.”

As well as professing his “love” of murderers in the book, the boy also drew a picture of what prosecutors described as the “perfect school shooter”.

In one passage, the boy claimed: “Everyone is filthy and deserve to be shot, including me. I’ll play the role of god and decide who a let live and die.”

Elaborating on that alleged intention, he wrote in the diary: “I have a plan, a great f ****** plan.”

Referring to carrying out a shooting with his then-girlfriend, he said: “I’ll make some explosives then we’ll find a way back to Northallerton and we’ll begin our assault on that f ****** school.”

Another page is devoted to “stuff we need” in order to execute a school shooting, including napalm, firearms and pipe bombs.

In other entries, the boy described the human race as a “vile species which needs to die out” and humanity itself as “a curse and a burden”.

One extract reads: “We need to aid natural selection and help forward our species. Right now, it’s f ***** , it’s all downhill. I love murderers.”

A picture of the book was shown to the court with the words “Helter Skelter” written on the cover, a supposed nod to notorious murderer Charles Manson’s idea of an apocalyptic war arising from racial tensions.

After the verdicts, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb told the pair they will be sentenced when she has considered reports about them both.

She told the jury: “Nobody will be in any doubt as to the gravity of their conduct and the plans they have made.”

She said it was an “unusual case” but told the jury the “welfare of young people” was the primary concern of the sentencing system.

The teenagers, both 15, sat motionless alongside their tearful mothers as the verdicts were announced.

During the three-week trial, prosecutors claimed that the pair “hero-worshipped” Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, the teenagers responsible for murdering 13 people at Columbine High School, Colorado, in 1999.