Far-right security guard collected manuals on building bombs and killing with bare hands
Pawel Golaszewski had a stash of knives and had looked into obtaining a gun
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A private investigator with far-right views has been jailed for more than two years for collecting bomb and murder manuals.
Pawel Golaszewski, 34, had looked into obtaining a gun and possessed knives, smoke grenades, handcuffs and restraints.
The Old Bailey heard that although the part-time security guard had not plotted an attack, the documents could be used to kill using household items or someone’s bare hands.
Judge Rebecca Poulet QC jailed Golaszewski for 26 months and handed him a year on extended licence for collecting six documents useful to a person committing an act of terrorism.
She said evidence gathered by police showed his views were “Islamophobic and of an extreme right-wing nature”, and that a former work colleague said Golaszewski held “neo-Nazi beliefs”.
“In addition to having this mindset you possessed a number of knives, handcuffs, smoke grenades, a torch with a concealed blade, surveillance equipment [and] you showed interest in obtaining a gun,” she added.
“Overall, the mindset material and the objects found at your home and in the car create a concerning context to your possession of the documents … I do have some serious concerns about your motivation.”
The judge said Golaszewski’s work as a private investigator and security guard was not a good enough reason for possessing the weapons and documents, which “provides clear instructions for specific terrorist acts endangering life”.
Golaszewski hung his head as the sentence was passed on Friday morning, after his defence lawyer told the court he was saddened by the loss of his security career.
“This offending represents a significant fall from grace for a man who - as he sees it - has dedicated his adult life to protecting people and keeping them out of harm’s way,” Ms Herzog said, calling her client an “information magpie” with a genuine interest in the military.
Giving evidence at trial, Golaszewski claimed he had not read any of the documents and did not understand the titles of The Big Book of Mischief, Mini Manual of the Urban Guerilla and Anarchist Cookbook.
He admitted understanding what the other three - Murder Inc The Book by Jack the Rippa, the 21 Silent Techniques of Killing and Improvised Munitions Handbook - meant but claimed his security work provided a reasonable excuse.
Judge Poulet said the jury had rejected his explanation to find him unanimously guilty of all six offences.
“Most of these texts contained viable recipes and clear instructions for workable explosive devices,” she added.
“These were written for someone without expert knowledge - all provided step-by-step instructions to inflict serious harm or death on a victim, including silent assassination techniques. They contain several alternative but specific kinds of terrorist activity that are very likely to endanger life.”
The court heard that when Golaszewski was arrested by armed police in Leeds in February, he asked officers what was “going on” and added: “How can I be a terrorist? I’m Polish and I have no criminal record.”
Golaszewski told the jury he was not racist and merely had legitimate concerns over immigration.
The court heard he had taken screenshots of Britain First’s Facebook page, researched Ukip and made repeated visits to a website called the European Knights Project, which contains racist and antisemitic conspiracy theories about “Western civilisation”.
Golaszewski, who is Polish but has lived in Britain for 10 years, had also been photographed with far-right Polish politician Janusz Korwin-Mikke in Doncaster.
The former MEP was repeatedly fined by the European Parliament for racist comments, and was suspended after giving a Nazi salute in 2015, then again for describing migrants as “human garbage”.
Detective Chief Superintendent Martin Snowden, the head of Counter Terrorism Policing North East, said the manuals Golaszewski collected were “deeply concerning, particularly in light of his support for right-wing causes and his racist, anti-Muslim and anti-immigration views”.
“The jury felt there was no reasonable excuse for Golaszewski to seek out and retain detailed information about how to kill people, step-by-step instructions for making high-grade explosives and guerrilla warfare techniques,” he added.
Golaszewski, of Wensleydale Mews in Armely, was ordered to notify police of his location for 10 years after his release from prison.
He was one of three far-right extremists being sentenced at courts in London and Leeds on Friday, after the head of UK counter-terror police warned that right-wing terrorism was their “fastest-growing problem”.
Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu said that children as young as 14 had been investigated over neo-Nazi beliefs, amid a rise in sophisticated online propaganda.
“Anywhere along this spectrum, people who are vulnerable to it can adopt part of that ideology to move into a terrorist act,” he warned.