Life for terrorist

Mosque attacks thwarted

A Neo-Nazi who was plotting to blow up mosques in Aberdeen has been jailed for life.

Connor Ward was caught with a cache of weapons and bomb-making equipment, as well as a map of all the mosques in Aberdeen, when police raided his home in Banff.

The 25-year-old – who previously sparked a bomb scare after threatening to blow himself and his dad up – had also pledged to usher in the “demise” of Islam.

At the High Court in Glasgow yesterday, Ward was told he would have to serve at least six years before being eligible for parole.

His extensive arsenal of weapons included ball bearings, which could have been used in pipe bombs and in rocket tubes capable of firing the projectiles.

Ward, who denied breaching the Terrorism Act, told the court he bought the metal balls on Amazon so he could hunt rabbits.

But that claim was dismissed by judge Lord Burns.

Handing him a discretionary life sentence, the judge said Ward “formed an intention” to use the bearings to attack mosques.

“You had chosen a method of inflicting damage to that target and anyone in it as demonstrated by the purchase of ball bearings and tubes to put them in,” he said.

“You had explored means by which you might disguise yourself in order to perpetrate this act and avoid detection.”

Lord Burns added it was clear Ward was “deeply committed” to neoNazi ideology and that if his threats were carried out it would have had “catastrophic results”.

He said: “This involved a high level of research and planning, as shown by the vast collection of manuals for the manufacture of IEDs at home.

“Because you reached the stage of buying the materials, namely ball bearings, which would have gone into the IED, it is legitimate to infer that you planned to cause serious injury, at the least, to anyone within or in the vicinity of the building at

“This involved a high level of research . . . as shown by the vast collection of manual for manufacture of IEDs”

the time of the explosion.”

A board will eventually decide if Ward will ever be released.

Last night, Iman Ibrahim Alwawi, of the Aberdeen Mosque and Islamic Centre, described the case as “very sad”.

He said: “A young person has destroyed his life due to misinformation and promotion of non-tolerance.

“We find Aberdonians to be very nice people and this is just one unfortunate incident that could have had very serious implications.

“We promote tolerance and understanding for all and pray that all communities in Aberdeen can come together in unity and help each other as fellow human beings.

“We work with different agencies to keep Scotland safe.”

Referring to the lengthy jail term, Mr Alwawi said: “We believe it is a lesson for others, and we trust the justice system.”

When police searched Ward’s home they found weapons including a stun gun, hundreds of knuckle dusters, knives and metal bars.

Deactivated bullets were also discovered. Police had been tipped off about a stun gun being delivered to Ward from abroad.

Officers also found a phone signal jamming device and a machine for detecting hidden bugs.

Downloaded items on his computer included documents on firearms and military tactics, right-wing propaganda and a map showing the addresses of five mosques in the Aberdeen area.

They also found a book which Ward had started to compile titled “Combat 18 British Mosque Address Book”.

Combat 18 is the name of a rightwing paramilitary group.

On its title page, Ward had written: “This book is dedicated to all that follow Mohammed and the Islamic faith. You will all soon suffer your demise.”

Ward, a former psychiatric patient, claimed he was suffering from mental illness at the time.

But jurors did not believe him and returned guilty verdicts on two charges of breaching the Terrorism Act 2000 and the Terrorism Act 2006 between February 26, 2011, and November 21, 2014.

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