Teen who planned mosque mass murder given 10-year sentence

A teenager who planned to carry out mass murder in a terror attack at a mosque in Greenock has been sentenced to 10 years in custody.

The 17-year-old was arrested in January after police caught him with an airgun and aerosol cans outside Inverclyde Muslim Centre.

The boy, who cannot be named because of his age, had planned to set fire to the building, killing any worshippers inside.

Sentencing the teenager at the High Court in Glasgow, judge Lord Arthurson said he had planned a "quite diabolical atrocity".

The mosque's chairman previously told BBC Scotland News he forgave the teenager and had sympathy for his family.

The boy had spoken online about how white people were at "war" and that he would "die for my land".

He was able to plan his attack after he tricked the centre's Imam into believing that he wanted to become a Muslim.

But police had received intelligence and arrested the boy, who was 16 at the time, outside the mosque.

He was carrying a rucksack with an airgun that he planned to use to keep worshippers inside the building after he set it on fire using aerosol cans.

The mosque's chairman Mohammed Akhtar previously said he was shocked and saddened by what had happened and there was no place for hate crime in the community.

He said: "We hope the young person can get the support and help he needs to understand the impact of his action.

"And we have sympathy for his family for such a difficult time."

He added: "Forgiveness and understanding each other. That's the most important thing.

"If you understand each other, most of the problems can be solved."

Mr Akhtar said he was very thankful for the police's quick response - and the safety assurances officers had given to local people since the thwarted attack.

The High Court in Glasgow previously heard the boy had been radicalised through social media from the age of 13.

A list of "inspirations" found in his phone included Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini and Norwegian neo-Nazi terrorist Anders Brevik.

He had initially wanted to plant bombs at his school in December last year, before deciding to target the mosque.

The court heard how the boy contacted an acquaintance via the Telegram messaging app.

He wrote: "It's good to infiltrate the target, be it a mosque or synagogue, as they think I'm one of them because I infiltrated the place."

The boy also asked the acquaintance to live stream the burning of the mosque.

This would be shared alongside a "final" manifesto in which he stated he had planned the attack for when "the mosque will be at its fullest".

The teenager pleaded guilty last month to acting with the intention of committing acts of terrorism.

He also admitted a further charge under the Terrorism Act.

The offences spanned between November 2024 and January 2025.

Sentencing, Lord Arthurson said: "What you had in mind can properly be categorised as a quite diabolical atrocity involving extreme violence and multiple deaths.

"You even requested that your attack be live-streamed. your conduct was only stopped by your arrest when you were, quite literally, at the door of the centre."

Omar Afzal, from the Scottish Association of Mosques, "This was a calculated and horrific plan to attack innocent worshippers.

"Thankfully, swift action from Police Scotland thwarted a tragedy targeting hundreds but has left the community deeply shaken.

"Communities cannot live in fear. The best response to hate is solidarity. But solidarity must be matched by policy, education, and political leadership."

Sineidin Corrins, deputy procurator fiscal for specialist casework at the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) described the offences as "deeply disturbing".

She added: "This heinous plan to attack those within his own local community was prepared and driven by racial and religiously motivated hatred and showed that he not only held Neo-Nazi beliefs but was about to act on them to cause pain and suffering.

"Fortunately, he was apprehended and this was prevented."