Thomas Webster is now behind bars for two years following a series of admissions regarding his role in stirring up racial and religious hatred online. The 29-year-old from Lapworth, Warwickshire, was sentenced at Warwick Crown Court after pleading guilty to 10 counts of stirring up racial hatred, as well as additional counts regarding religious hatred and hatred based on sexual orientation.
As reported by the BBC, legal troubles reportedly began after a documentary exposed his extremist views, leading to his eventual arrest and conviction. The investigation into Webster gained momentum after he was secretly recorded by an undercover BBC reporter for a programme titled Unmasked: Extreme Far Right.
During these recorded events in 2024, Webster, who was reportedly a member of the far right group Patriotic Alternative, boasted about his activities. Most notably, he admitted that while working at HMRC, he liked to “deliberately” give non-white people “bad information which sounds interesting, like I’m deliberately trying to sabotage them.”
He was dismissed from HMRC
He was eventually dismissed from his position at HMRC in February 2025, a month after the programme aired. The department reportedly stated that it takes such breaches of standards “extremely seriously” and noted that “where standards are not met, we act decisively.”
When speaking to the undercover reporter, Webster identified himself as a “white totalitarianist.” He expressed a desire for a world where white people become the default and all other races are extinct. His comments went even further, as he described himself as “a guy who seeks trouble” and claimed he would have “crushed [the] skulls” of a group of non-white men if they had walked near him during a hike with other group members.
Following the broadcast, police reportedly linked Webster to several social media accounts on X. He was arrested in September 2025, and investigators used data from his phone and computer to confirm the accounts were indeed his.
Despite the legal proceedings, many of his posts remained visible for weeks. These posts included extreme rhetoric where he praised Adolf Hitler and the Nazis, while also targeting prominent politicians with threats of violence. In one of his posts on X, which has now been taken down, Webster even reportedly went so far as to describe himself as a “genocidal racist monster.”
The scope of his online activity was vast. He expressed a desire for Jewish and gay people to be tortured and executed, and he called for the killing of all Muslims until they were “globally extinct.” In one instance, he stated that if a migrant hotel were placed on his road, he would “prepare for murder and prison time, I am serious.” After being contacted by the BBC, X removed the offending posts but did not provide further comment.
The situation did not end with the X investigation. Days before his sentencing, an active Substack account appearing to belong to Webster was reportedly discovered. This account shared intimate details of his life and continued to promote hateful content, including a call for the “total genetic extinction” of people from South Asia.
One comment on the account reportedly claimed that these posts were made despite bail conditions that strictly limited his internet use and barred him from social media. While Substack removed most of the posts after being contacted, some content remained visible.
During the court proceedings, it was revealed that Webster had been referred four times to the Prevent programme, which is the UK government scheme designed to stop individuals from becoming terrorists. Police also reportedly discovered a crossbow in the attic of his property, which was still in its original packaging.
Prosecutor Jamie Scott noted that while the Crown Prosecution Service took a “proportionate approach” by charging him with 12 specific offences, there was “a raft” of similar material posted by Webster online. His defence lawyer, Susan Guest, argued that Webster struggled with social interaction and anxiety, leading him to become “more isolated” in an online environment where his views were “reinforced rather than challenged.”
She claimed that “he almost lived in a bubble and this online community reinforced his views,” adding that “that bubble subsequently popped and he now has to take responsibility for those actions.” Judge Anthony Potter was not swayed, noting that Webster had received numerous chances to change his behaviour.
“Talk is very very cheap,” the judge told him. “It has allowed you to escalate your offending and propagate the most harmful views. I cannot accept that there is a realistic prospect of rehabilitation in the community. I’d be failing in my public duty if I didn’t sent you to custody.”
Published: Sep 7, 2026 05:00 pm