Briton jailed for anti-Muslim Facebook posts

A Briton who posted messages on Facebook to stir up religious hatred against Muslims was sentenced at the Bradford Crown Court to one year in jail and 300 hours of community service on Wednesday.

John Hanson, 61, from Yorkshire, posted two messages on Facebook in July 2016 in which he accused Muslims for being responsible for wars and attacks around the world and called on others to commit acts of violence against Muslims.

In a third post published in June 2017, he included a photo of himself wearing a t-shirt which mentioned destroying Islam. In a police interview he admitted that the Facebook page he posted the comments on was his and he was the only person able to update it.

Hanson initially denied that the posts were intended to stir up religious hatred but accepted that what he had written could be upsetting for others. He later pleaded guilty to three counts of stirring up religious hatred. His sentence was suspended for two years.

Sue Hemming from the Crown Prosecution Service said: “John Hanson’s case is another example of people posting extremist messages on social media. This is a serious offence which harms community relations.

“Where there is enough evidence and it is in the public interest we will prosecute those who seek to stir up religious hatred.”