Key facts
- A man named Kieran Kyle admitted sending threatening emails to Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch.
- One email stated: 'when I was in the IRA I would have shot you f****** dead'.
- Kyle also made racist references and claimed to be ex-IRA in the emails.
- The messages were sent on the same day Badenoch apologized for a social media clip that mistakenly used footage of Bloody Sunday.
- Kyle emailed Badenoch's husband, Hamish, using a racist term and telling him to 'put a leash on her'.
- Kyle will be sentenced on October 29.
A man named Kieran Kyle has admitted to sending threatening emails to Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, including one that stated he would have shot her dead if he were in the IRA. The court heard that Kyle sent three emails to Badenoch's parliamentary address on May 2, containing racist references and claims of being ex-IRA. One message read: 'I'm ex-IRA, so Bloody Sunday references from you are going to give you trouble.'
The messages were sent on the same day Badenoch issued an apology after a social media clip criticizing a government bill addressing historical issues in Northern Ireland mistakenly included footage of Bloody Sunday. Badenoch stated she did not approve the video, attributing its release to "very young people."
In addition to the emails to Badenoch, Kyle also sent a message to her husband, Hamish, on April 29, using a racist term and suggesting he should "put a leash on her" due to her "big mouth." Another email sent days later reiterated racist language and a threat of violence, stating, 'pray she never ends up in Belfast cos she'll be left face down in a ditch with a bullet in her head.'
Prosecutor Jennifer Dannhauser informed the court that both Mr. and Mrs. Badenoch were left "distressed" and "very upset" by the racist language and threats. Kyle, who has no prior convictions, pleaded guilty at Westminster Magistrates' Court to two counts of sending indecent or offensive communications. Chief magistrate Paul Goldspring indicated that a custodial sentence is a "real option" for Kyle, who is scheduled to be sentenced next month.