A man has been found guilty in the U.K. of possessing explosive material and manuals on how to make improvised explosives and firearms.
Following an investigation by British Counter Terrorism Police, Vaughn Dolphin from Walsall, England, was arrested on June 27, 2022 at an address in Cheshire on suspicion of terrorism offenses.
On April 28 at Birmingham Crown Court he was found guilty of two offenses of possessing chemicals to make explosive material, despite claiming that he had bought the material to get rid of a tree stump in his garden. Dolphin, aged 20, was also found guilty of six offenses relating to the possession and distribution of terrorist manuals. He was also convicted of two further charges of disseminating a terrorist publication, being reckless as to whether terrorist activity would be encouraged, as well as a charge of possession of a firearm. He will be sentenced on May 11.
Investigators found he had taken a lot of interest in terrorist attacks in New Zealand and the U.S. including downloading manifestos drawn up by the attackers.
Video was shown to the jury of Dolphin wearing homemade body armor adorned with Nazi symbols, however he claimed he had wanted to wear it at a cosplay convention, where people dress in costumes of real or fictional characters.
Detective Chief Superintendent Mark Payne, head of Counter Terrorism Policing West Midlands CTU, said: “Dolphin had claimed he had an interest in chemicals and military memorabilia however he combined a toxic extremist mindset, sharing right wing material online with the real-world acquisition of explosive material and homemade weapons. His mindset is one of a dangerous individual equipping themselves to harm others who did not look like him or who he disagreed with. Extremists use this kind of ideology to create discord, distrust and fear among our communities. Our work to target dangerous individuals continues.”
Read more at Counter Terrorism Policing
