Wigan man jailed for 16 months after distributing material to stir up racial hatred

Stuart Sutton, 45, was identified by intelligence after posting anti-Semitic and other racist content on social media platforms over an eight-month period in 2021.

A search warrant was executed at his home on Broadway, Hindley, in February and he was arrested in an investigation by Counter Terrorism Policing North West (CTPNW).

Sutton faced five charges of sharing written material that was “threatening, abusive or insulting intending thereby to stir up racial hatred or having regard to all the circumstances, whereby racial hatred was likely to be stirred up”.

He was prosecuted under the 1986 Public Order Act and pleaded not guilty when he appeared at Wigan and Leigh Magistrates’ Court last month.

The case was sent to Bolton Crown Court and Sutton changed his pleas, admitting the five offences.

The Honorary Recorder of Bolton Judge Martin Walsh jailed him for 16 months for each offence, to be served concurrently.

Sutton must also pay £156 to fund victim services and his phone must be forfeited and destroyed.

Amanda Bomsztyk, northern regional director of the Community Security Trust, said: “CST welcomes this outcome which follows our alerting CTPNW to Sutton’s incitement just over a year ago.

"It is important that such extreme Jew-hatred and racism leads to arrest and imprisonment.”

Det Supt Andy Meeks, of CTPNW’s investigation department, said: "We would always encourage people to report acts of racial hatred, whether that's in person or online, and this can be done via the police or at www.gov.uk/ACT."