Key facts
- Thomas Webster, a former tax worker, has been jailed for two years for inciting hatred online.
- Webster described himself as a "genocidal racist monster" and admitted to stirring up religious and racial hatred, and hatred based on sexual orientation.
- His actions were exposed by a BBC investigation where he spoke to an undercover journalist.
- He was dismissed from his job at HMRC in February 2025.
- Police found a crossbow at his property and he had been referred to the Prevent anti-terrorist program four times.
Thomas Webster, a former tax worker who self-identified as a "genocidal racist monster," has been sentenced to two years in prison for inciting hatred online. The conviction followed an investigation by BBC Wales Investigates, which featured comments Webster made to an undercover journalist.
Webster admitted to stirring up religious hatred, stirring up hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation, and inciting racial hatred. In his online posts, he expressed desires for Jewish and gay people to be tortured and executed, and for Muslims to be "globally extinct." He also stated that if a migrant hotel was placed on his road, he would "prepare for murder and prison time."
During his employment at HMRC, Webster admitted to deliberately giving non-white individuals "bad information" to sabotage them. He was dismissed from HMRC in February 2025, a month after the BBC program aired. HMRC stated it takes breaches of its standards "extremely seriously" and acts decisively.
Webster also described himself as a "white totalitarianist" who believed in the extinction of all other races and boasted about potentially harming non-white men. Following the BBC program, police linked him to social media accounts, primarily on X, and arrested him in September 2025. He pleaded guilty to 12 offenses last month.
The court heard that Webster had been referred to the UK Government-led Prevent program four times since 2017 due to his association with far-right groups. A crossbow was also found in his attic. His defense lawyer cited social interaction difficulties and anxiety, suggesting an online community reinforced his extreme views.
Judge Anthony Potter stated that Webster had been given numerous opportunities to show remorse and that he could not accept a realistic prospect of rehabilitation, necessitating a custodial sentence. The prosecution noted a "raft" of similar material posted online by Webster, beyond the charges he faced. The judge emphasized that Webster's words encouraged others to express similar views, going beyond freedom of speech.