Scottish authorities have foiled a terrorist attack against the LGBTQIA community.
Alan Edward (54), a former journalist, has been arrested on a number of charges relating to terrorism against ethnic minorities and the LGBTQIA community. The man in question had managed to create a real arsenal with the intention of attacking the LGBTQIA community in the Scottish town of Falkirk.
He was very active and followed on social media – almost 28,000 followers on Instagram – and had made no effort to hide his far-right views, which included denying the Holocaust, praising Adolf Hilter and inciting violence against minorities. And it was a short step from social media to concrete action.
The misstep was made via the messaging app WhatsApp, where Alan Edward confided in an accomplice who revealed his intentions to prepare an attack on the LGBTQIA community, in addition to his hatred of homosexual and transgender people.
At his trial, Alan Edward denied the charges against him, claiming that his arsenal of weapons was only for “outdoor activities” and that he had no intention of using them to carry out terrorist acts against minorities.
The verdict was, of course, guilty on four charges under the Terrorism Act, such as incitement to support a proscribed organisation and possession of weapons for the preparation of terrorist acts. Alan Edward will remain in custody pending sentencing at the High Court in Edinburgh on 21 October.