A WHITE nationalist who regarded Christchurch mosque mass murderer Brenton Tarrant as a “hero” is facing a lengthy prison sentence for terrorism offences. 

Sam Imrie, 24, was arrested after detectives discovered in July 2019 that he had been posted messages on social media that he was planning to attack Fife Islamic Centre in Glenrothes.

The High Court in Edinburgh police who searched his home at Colliston Avenue in Glenrothes also made a series of horrifying discoveries.

Detectives discovered Imrie had acquired a terrifying arsenal of weapons which included a combat knife, nunchucks, an axe, a black handled knife, a hammer, a rife scope and a wooden handled lock knife.

Lisa Gillespie QC told the court how the police also recovered a “manifesto” entitled the “Great Replacement” by far right terrorist Tarrant, who murdered 51 people in his March 2019 attacks.

They also recovered a manifesto written by Anders Breivik, another fascist who slaughtered 77 people in attacks in Norway in 2011. 

Detectives also discovered computer equipment containing thousands of images glorifying far right terrorism attacks and nazi ideology. 

Some of the images referred to Tarrant and Breivik as ‘saints’ and one image was of pop star Taylor Swift which had been photoshopped - the lenses of sunglasses which she was wearing had been doctored to included swastikas.

They found he possessed copies of Adolf Hitler’s work Mein Kampf, indecent images of child pornography and extreme porn which showed dead mutilated women being subjected to sexual acts. 

Imrie also possessed copies of the video which Tarrant had made of himself carrying out the shootings.

Imrie was caught after officers in the Metropolitan Police tipped off Police Scotland counterparts. 

English officers had been scrutinising a group called ‘FashWave Artists’ on Telegram, an instant messaging app. 

The group hosted images and memes glorifying fascism but Imrie posted a series of messages in which he said he was planning to “burn down” a mosque. 

He also said he had written to Breivik. 

Detectives found CCTV footage of Imrie trying the door at the mosque before driving away. 

A jury heard how armed police officers swooped on Imrie’s home at 2am and took him into custody. 

On Wednesday, Imrie, who denied any wrongdoing, was convicted on two charges of breaching the terrorism act, wilful fire raising, possessing child and ‘extreme’ pornography and drink driving.

Moments after prosecutor Ms Gillespie said the Crown were considering seeking a Serious Crime Prevention Order against Imrie, Lord Mulholland remanded the first offender in custody.

Imrie was told that the judge needed a background report before he could be sentenced.

But Lord Mulholland also warned Imrie: “Be under no illusion - you have been convicted of very serious offences including gathering information about terrorism and encouraging terrorism, child pornography and extreme pornography. 

“You will not be surprised to know that you will be receiving a sentence of some length.”

Lord Mulholland spoke moments after jurors returned guilty verdicts to two terrorism charges. 

The first terrorism charge stated that Imrie made statements on Telegram and Facebook which encouraged acts of terrorism. 

The second charge to which he was convicted of stated that Imrie made a “record of information” which would be useful to somebody who was committing acts of terrorism. 

He was acquitted of a terrorism charge which stated that he engaged in conduct in “preparation” of terrorism acts. 

During proceedings, jurors head Imrie tell police officers that he was a white nationalist. 

He also said he believed that non white people were “inferior” to whites but that Chinese people were “superior”. 

Imrie claimed that he had been drinking when he had made the offensive remarks on Telegram. Jurors heard how the comments included how he was going to set fire to a mosque. 

He wrote: “No guns. All I can do is burn them down.”

Imrie said his comments were a joke and he wasn’t serious about setting a mosque on fire. He said videos which he had made and posted on Telegram in which he said showed Fife Islamic Centre was a fake. 

The court heard that the videos actually showed that he had set fire to Strathore lodge, a disused building in Thornton Fife. Imrie also admitted that he had also driven to St Drostan’s cemetery in Markinch, Fife, and had set fire to foilage close to a gravestone. The headstone was damaged as a consequence of the blaze. 

Giving evidence to the court, Imrie also admitted to downloading so called ‘gore’ images of people being killed. He claimed he was depressed at the time and wasn’t serious about his claims about carrying out terrorism attacks. 

Ms Gillespie said: “You consider Brenton Tarrant to be a hero?”

The accused replied: “Yeah. I think I did.”

In his closing speech, defence solicitor advocate Jim Keegan QC urged jurors to acquit his client.

Mr Keegan said that when police turned up at Imrie's family home he told his mother: "I have done something really stupid." 

The defence lawyer added: "Well, ladies and gentlemen, that was perhaps the understatement of the year 2019."

"The accused has said the whole thing was a con. He has described it more than once as a joke. I don't see any of this as a joke and I don't think he should see any of this as a joke now either. He has been in custody for two years now."

Mr Keegan said: "He, on his own admission, hated Muslims in 2019. Didn't know any, but he hated them. His impression of Islam was something to be hated."

But he added it was "very sad to say" that some of those views were not completely unusual. He said: "But I suggest that does not make him a terrorist.”

However, jurors convicted him of the offences. 

Following conviction, Ms Gillespie told the court that Imrie had no previous convictions. She said that the Crown were considering imposing a serious crime prevention order. She said that the order was still being “drafted”.

Mr Keegan told Lord Mulholland that he’d reserve his mitigation until sentencing.

He added: “I don’t have anything to say at this stage.”

Lord Mulholland also told Imrie that because he had been convicted of terrorism offences, he’d have to notify the police upon his release of personal information. 

Imrie was told he would have to notify officers of his name, address and any locations where he might be staying. 

Lord Mulholland also placed Imrie on the Sex Offenders Register because of the pornography convictions. 

The judge then told the security officers who sat beside Imrie in the dock: “Take him away.”

Imrie didn’t turn to look at family members who gathered in court to see him.

His mother Joyce,50, and other family members refused to comment after leaving court. 

Imrie is expected to be sentenced at the High Court in Glasgow on November 24 2021.