Man admits threatening to kill MP for second time

Benjamin Clarke will be sentenced in May

A man has admitted threatening to kill his MP for a second time.

Benjamin Clarke, 31, messaged Bishop Auckland's Sam Rushworth last year, saying he wanted to lock him in a building and set fire to it.

Clarke, 31, of Bishop Auckland, appeared at Durham Crown Court to admit a second charge of making threats to kill the Labour politician, this time in February.

Judge Francis Laird KC told Clarke, who appeared via a video link from prison, that he will be sentenced on 12 May and he was remanded in custody.

No further details of the second offence were given in court.

A psychiatric examination has been carried out and a report will be prepared ahead of sentence.

'Hear him screaming'

Previous court hearings were told Clarke, of Durham Street, contacted his MP in August on social media, saying: "I cannot wait for your next public appearance, you will be lucky to leave it in one piece."

Mr Rushworth blocked him from contacting him on the social media platform.

The following month, Clarke told two mental health practitioners he wanted to find the MP and smash his head off a pavement, set fire to a building he was in and then "lock all the doors so I could hear him screaming".

Clarke then began the process of applying to withdraw his guilty pleas to making a threat to kill and a malicious communications offence.

Durham Crown Court heard he had since decided not to proceed with that application.

Sam Rushworth MP blocked Clarke on social media

Following the hearing in January, where Clarke said he wanted to apply to change his guilty plea, he was granted bail provided that he did not contact Mr Rushworth.

But by his latest guilty plea, he has admitted to making contact with the MP and threatening to kill him the following month.

Speaking after Clarke's initial court hearing in December, Mr Rushworth, who was elected in July's general election having gained the seat from the Conservatives, said political discourse needed to be cleaned up.

He said: "What starts with fake news and hate speech, progresses to harassments, threats, and can all too easily make its way into the real world."