Local man given custodial sentence after alarming social media posts and device shown to officers
A 61-year-old man from Gateshead has been jailed for one year after admitting to sending threatening messages and showing what looked like a homemade explosive device to police officers.
The case was heard at Newcastle Crown Court where prosecutors described a string of social media messages that prompted a police visit in late March. Officers attended the man’s home after receiving the posts and were shown an object that appeared to be an improvised device constructed with a tube containing nails.
- Defendant: 61-year-old man from Gateshead
- Date of police call-out: 26 March (messages sent that day)
- Sentence: 12 months’ imprisonment after plea to communicating false information
Prosecutors told the court the messages conveyed hostility towards people described by the defendant as "invaders", including references to wanting them to "go boom" and to "blow up" an "invaders' hotel". When officers attended the property, the man was said to be very agitated and spoke about his hatred of the government. He produced the device from a kitchen cupboard and told police he meant what he had written.
"I mean what I say, I want them to go boom," the court heard he told officers when asked about the object.
The court was also told that the man had sent a photograph of the device to another person while discussing plans to "kill loads of invaders" and asking if the recipient had grenades.
Although the device was described in court as an "amateur" homemade construction rather than an operational explosive, the prosecution said the communications were deliberate and intended to cause fear. They characterised the behaviour as motivated by hostility towards people on the basis of their citizenship, and treated it as a hate crime.
Caretaker circumstances and mitigation
In mitigation, the defence outlined the man’s problems with alcohol dependency, which they said were a factor in his conduct. The court accepted his guilty plea to the offence of communicating false information with intent to cause fear and imposed a custodial term of 12 months.
The outcome emphasises how threats posted online that appear to involve weapons or explosives are treated seriously by police and prosecutors — especially where the language indicates hostility towards a protected characteristic such as nationality or immigration status.
| Key dates | Action |
|---|---|
| 26 March | Messages sent to police on social media; photograph of device shared |
| March (visit) | Police attended; device shown to officers; defendant agitated |
| Sentence hearing | Guilty plea accepted; 12 months’ imprisonment imposed |
Northumbria Police statements and court reporting made clear that while the object resembled a nail bomb, it was a crude construct and the prosecution proceeded on the basis of the communications and the fear they caused rather than proof of a working explosive. The court was told the defendant’s messages conveyed an intent to alarm and a wish to see harm come to groups he described as "invaders".
For Gateshead communities this case will be a reminder of the fine line between online anger and criminal threatening behaviour. It also underlines how emergency services and the criminal justice system respond to material that suggests violence or the intention to target specific groups.
Police and local authorities continue to encourage anyone with concerns about threatening messages or potential extremist behaviour to report it promptly so it can be investigated.
