Man denies 'racial hatred' over Southport posts

Flowers and tributes were placed outside the Atkinson Art Centre in Southport a week after three children were fatally stabbed at a Taylor Swift-themed holiday club

A man accused of inciting race hate before and after the Southport stabbings went online to falsely claim the suspect had arrived in the UK on a dinghy, a court has heard.

Mark Heath repeatedly said the offender behind the attacks was an asylum seeker named Ali Al Shakati on X, formerly known as Twitter.

He denies stirring up racial hatred by publishing "threatening, abusive or insulting" material to the site in July and August.

Mr Heath, of Kestrel Road in Oakham, Rutland, told Leicester Crown Court, sitting at Loughborough Courthouse, on Monday his posts were legitimate comment while exercising his freedom of speech.

'Tipping point'

Prosecutor Lyndon Harris told jurors that tweets sent by Mr Heath had been screenshotted by police to compile a 48-page document for the jury.

The dossier includes claims that asylum seekers "are arriving and already here, ready to butcher our kids".

He claimed the Southport stabbings in July - when three children were killed, and 10 other people were injured - were a "tipping point", and that the perpetrator was a failed asylum seeker who was on a plane to Rwanda "that got stopped" by the Labour party, Sir Keir Starmer and "other lefties".

Jurors were told Mr Heath, 45, went on to write: "Those people now have blood on their hands, as they kept a dangerous killer in Britain."

Images attached to one of Mr Heath's posts carried slogans reading "it is time we the people took our country back" and "I will not submit to Islam in my own country".

Mr Heath, whose X profile informed his 6,843 followers he was a Reform voter, a Christian and proud Englishman, also sent a post containing an abusive remark about the trans community, and another suggesting non-British citizens were responsible for the majority of assaults on women.

The stabbings led to widespread disorder across the country in July and August

Mr Harris told the court: "The prosecution say that the tweets speak for themselves.

"The prosecution say there is a theme running through these posts - it's anti-immigration and anti-Muslim.

"There is language of violence, talk of war, talk of white genocide, talk of Sharia Law being introduced in this country.

"There are numerous posts where Mr Heath says the country is at war or war is coming."

Although some of the posts contained legitimate political comment, the court heard, the prosecution allege some "crossed the line" by targeting racial groups.

The trial continues.