A neo-nazi teenager who was caught by MI5 as he tried to buy a gun for an attack has said he was inspired by the murder of MP Jo Cox.
Alfie Coleman was detained during an undercover operation while he paid £3,500 for a Makarov pistol and ammunition in a supermarket car park.
Coleman, who is now 21, believed in ‘the supremacy of white people and neo-Nazism’ and idolised Thomas Mair, who killed the Labour MP for Batley and Spen, jurors heard.
The teenager had approached far-right organisation Patriotic Alternative in July 2021, saying he wanted to participate in its activism.
The Old Bailey heard that he had allegedly planned a terrorist attack in 2022 on ‘Mayor of London house’, with his target specified as the address of the Lord Mayor of London.
His plan included a reference to planting an explosive in a cash machine and the use of knives and crossbows, but was later abandoned, jurors heard.
Another file outlined another planned attack, this time a plane hijacking.
In a ‘diary’ document, Coleman had also expressed interest in going to France, which he said was close to an ‘all out race war’ and was ‘where I feel most useful and where I can create the biggest impact.
Coleman, of Great Notley, Essex, was caught after agreeing to buy a Makarov pistol, five magazines and 200 rounds of ammunition.
He made the purchases after conversing with undercover officers on social networks including Telegram and Wire for several months, believing they were sympathetic to his views.
The former Tesco worker was led to believe that the goods would be delivered in a Land Rover Discovery at a Morrisons car park in Stratford, East London on September 29, 2023.
Just two days before he picked up his equipment, Coleman allegedly told a contact: ‘Just something has gotta be done, how long can we sit here and talk over the internet.’
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The same day he also placed an online order for a Gerber Strong Arm knife with a 4.8 inch blade.
When he arrived, he was arrested by a team of counter-terrorism police armed with stun guns.
Nicholas De La Poer KC, prosecuting, told jurors: ‘The prosecution’s case is that Mr Coleman believed in an extreme right-wing ideology which included idolising the likes of Thomas Mair, the man who murdered the MP, Jo Cox.’
Mr De La Poer added that Coleman had allegedly created a list of vehicle number plates, one of which belonged to a Tesco colleague who he branded a ‘race traitor’.
The singled-out white female co-worker was married to a man of mixed Indian and Seychellois heritage, Mr De La Poer said.
He continued: ‘The prosecution’s case is that however he presented to the outside world when at work, Mr Coleman was seething with hatred on the inside. As a result he created a list.’
Coleman did not deny writing a text similar to the ‘manifestos’ of far-right terrorists, and admitted to chatting to people online who declared extreme right-wing views and idolised Hitler.
He also pleaded guilty to attempting to possess both a firearm and ammunition but denied he was planning a terrorist attack, and insisted he procured the weapons because he envisaged the breakdown of society.
Coleman denies one charge of preparing terrorist acts.
The trial continues.
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