Nadine Osman
A 24-year-old man has gone on trial accused of preparing acts of terror, including planning an attack on an Islamic Centre in Fife the High Court in Edinburgh on October 8.
Prosecutors allege Sam Imrie intended to target the Fife Islamic Centre in Glenrothes and live-stream footage of the attack on social media. Imrie, who is facing nine charges, including three under the Terrorism Act, is charged with posting statements on the instant messenger platform Telegram showing he planned to attack the Islamic centre. Imrie is also accused of planning to stream live footage of “an incident”.
Giving evidence, DC Kevin Paterson, a terrorism investigator with Police Scotland, said Imrie had swastikas and the numbers 14 and 88 written on his bedroom wall. Asked about what the numbers symbolised, Paterson told the court: “14 is seen widely as a white supremacist number; it’s a number linked to a sentence containing 14 words about protecting white people and their children.”
He added: “Eight similarly has right-wing connotations. The eight doubled becomes HH, which can stand for Heil Hitler [the nazi salute].” Paterson also spoke about a ring found in a bedroom said to be Imrie’s during the police search. Describing the design of the ring in court, he said: “I think it’s called the Black Sun,” adding, “I’ve seen similar designs in right-wing art.”
The manifesto of Brenton Tarrant, who killed 51 people at two mosques in New Zealand in 2019, was found in Imrie’s bedroom. Paterson was asked to read a section of the document which contained offensive language towards the Muslim community.Earlier, the court heard Imrie is said to have driven to the Fife Islamic Centre in Poplar Road, where he made recordings on his phone to “carry out observations” of the area while in possession of a can of petrol.
Jurors heard that he repeatedly attempted to gain access to the centre and posted statements on Telegram that showed he planned to attack the building.
He is also alleged to have deliberately set fire to a doorway and entrance hall at Strathore Lodge and a headstone at St Drostan’s Cemetery, Markinch, Fife. Jurors heard Imrie has been charged with owning nunchucks, a hammer, a baseball bat, a rifle scope and multiple knives. Imrie was also accused of possessing neo-Nazi, anti-Semitic, and anti-Muslim materials, as well as extreme pornography, including indecent images of children with human corpses.
He was also said to have been found in possession of audio files and texts that “glorified terrorism” and works, including ‘The Great Replacement’ by Tarrant.
Imrie is also charged with driving while under the influence of drugs and alcohol in July 2019.
The trial continues.
