Image copyright N Chadwick Image caption Stickers were put up at Aston University in July 2016

Five men accused of plastering a university campus with racist stickers posed for a photo while performing Nazi-style salutes, a court heard.

Labels bearing messages such as "White Zone" were found at Aston University last July.

The men, said to be members of right-wing group National Action, bragged about upsetting "traitors" after the event, prosecutors said.

All five, on trial at Birmingham Crown Court, deny inciting racial hatred.

Kelly Brocklehurst, prosecuting, told jurors several batches of the stickers were deposited on campus.

'Butt-hurt students'

He said one, found on an entrance sign, showed a white figure giving a Nazi-type salute, with the words "White Zone - National Action".

Another read: "Britain is ours - the rest must go."

He told jurors they would see an email from one of the accused, described as an "organiser", boasting of provoking a reaction from "butt-hurt", or overly sensitive, students.

An image showed some of the men with the far right group's flag, and two of them giving Nazi-type salutes, posed in front of the university.

While it was understood the defendants admit putting up the stickers, Mr Brocklehurst said, they deny inciting racial hatred.

There was "likely no dispute about what they did, the dispute is likely about why they did it," he said.

"When you are faced with something that says White Zone and the image of somebody with a raised right arm, stickers with swastikas, we say how can that not be threatening, abusive or at very least insulting?" Mr Brocklehurst said.

"That is exactly the aim, or one of the aims, of what these defendants were seeking to achieve."

Mr Brocklehurst said the bragging email showed "a clear indication that it would provide a reaction, a reaction the Crown say is in response to something threatening, abusive and insulting".

Chad Williams-Allen, Dean Lloyd, both of Tantany Lane, West Bromwich, and Garry Jack, of Heathland Avenue, Birmingham and two other men who cannot be named are accused of putting up the stickers on the afternoon of July 9, 2016.

The trial continues.</s>A NEWTON-LE-WILLOWS man accused of being a member of a banned extremist terror group has made a first Crown Court appearance at the Old Bailey.

Matthew Hankinson, 23, of Market Street, Earlestown, appeared at the court alongside five other alleged members of group National Action.

Others who also appeared included Christopher Lythgoe, 31, of Greymist Avenue, Woolston, Warrington, who is accused of encouraging the machete murder of West Lancashire Labour MP Rosie Cooper.

Lythgoe allegedly granted a fellow member of the banned group permission to carry out an attack on July 1.

A 22-year-old man from Lancashire, who cannot be named for legal reasons, who is charged with intending to commit acts of terrorism contrary to Section 5 of the Terrorism Act 2006 also appeared.

He is alleged to have bought a “Gladius Machete” for the purpose of murdering the MP between June 5 and July 3.

He is also accused of making threats to kill a woman police officer on July 1.

The man and Lythgoe are also both charged with being members of National Action.

Also Garron Helm, 24, Gladstone Road, Seaforth; Andrew Clarke, 33, of Marsh House Lane, Paddington, Warrington and Michael Trubini, 35, Dutton Court, Warrington also appeared at the Old Bailey accused of continuing to be members of National Action after the group was banned under UK law on December 16.

No pleas were entered during the hearing.

The defendants have been remanded in custody to await trial, earmarked for June 11.</s>Two of five men accused of inciting racial hatred after plastering offensive stickers across a university campus posed for a photograph giving a Nazi salute, a court has heard.

Prosecutors said “threatening, abusive or at very least insulting” stickers stuck to signs at Aston University, Birmingham, were “recruitment tools” for the neo-Nazi National Action group.

One of the stickers showed a white figure giving a Nazi salute, and stated: “White Zone – National Action”. Another read: “Britain is ours – the rest must go.”

The men are accused of putting up the stickers on the afternoon of 9 July 2016. Jurors saw university CCTV footage allegedly showing the men on campus that day.

An image showed some of the group posing in front of the university with the National Action flag, and two of them giving Nazi salutes. 



Jurors were told they would see evidence of planning, including messages and a downloaded map of the campus.

Opening the prosecution on Thursday, Kelly Brocklehurst said the defendants accepted they put the stickers up, but did not accept that they had incited racial hatred.

“When you are faced with something that says White Zone and the image of somebody with a raised right arm, stickers with swastikas, we say: how can that not be threatening, abusive or at very least insulting?” the barrister said. “That is exactly the aim, or one of the aims, of what these defendants were seeking to achieve.”

He told the jury: “There’s likely no dispute about what they did, the dispute is likely about why they did it. But we say you can be, and will be, sure they intended racial hatred, and if not they were well aware of what those stickers were capable of achieving.”

The defendants, who are all said to have been members of National Action at the time, are: Chad Williams-Allen, 26, Dean Lloyd, 27, both of West Bromwich, and Garry Jack, 22, of Birmingham. Two other men cannot be named for legal reasons.

The jury was shown messages from 2 March 2016 in which Williams-Allen allegedly sent an image of a National Action sticker, and said: “Been taking the long route home through paki land and slapping these everywhere.”

Another defendant, also 26, had images on electronic devices seized by police which allegedly said “Hitler was right” and “bring back apartheid”. 



The trial, expected to last up to three weeks, continues.
Five alleged members of British neo-Nazi group National Action go on trial in Birmingham charged with inciting racial hatred at Aston University. National Action is a banned terror group.