Sam Melia guilty of publishing stickers designed to stir up racial hatred
Jurors found Melia guilty after just a day of deliberations
A far-right organiser who had posters of Oswald Mosley and Adolf Hitler up inside his house has been found guilty of publishing material designed to stir up racial hatred.
Jurors returned guilty verdicts for that charge, and one of intentionally encouraging or assisting the commission of an either-way offence on Wednesday, January 24.
Melia, 34, has been standing trial at Leeds Crown Court and last week jurors heard how he was arrested in April 2021 and his home searched, where officers discovered the images as well as a Nazi emblem, depicting an eagle with outstretched wings over a swastika.
Prosecutor Tom Storey KC told the court in his opening that Melia – a member of Patriotic Alternative – had set up a Telegram channel named Hundred Handers.
A far-right organiser who had posters of Oswald Mosley and Adolf Hitler up inside his house has been found guilty of publishing material designed to stir up racial hatred.
Jurors returned guilty verdicts for that charge, and one of intentionally encouraging or assisting the commission of an either-way offence on Wednesday, January 24.
Melia, 34, has been standing trial at Leeds Crown Court and last week jurors heard how he was arrested in April 2021 and his home searched, where officers discovered the images as well as a Nazi emblem, depicting an eagle with outstretched wings over a swastika.
Prosecutor Tom Storey KC told the court in his opening that Melia – a member of Patriotic Alternative – had set up a Telegram channel named Hundred Handers.
Mr Storey said: “Also found within the defendant’s Telegram posts and chat were messages which make clear that he expected that Hundred Handers stickers would be displayed in public places, and also that he had placed stickers in such places himself.
“He noted that there was to be a BLM (Black Lives Matter) protest in his town, and that he was going to ‘plaster the surrounding area the night before’.”
Jurors heard during the trial that Melia was stopped at Manchester Airport in possession with the stickers but he claimed to have downloaded them from the internet. Mr Storey said that an account under the name Sam M wrote: “Marx explained everything to me. Wasn’t stupid enough to link me or myself…Shouldn’t have handed my phone in or told them anything at all. This account is secure as is tied to a burner phone, really just my holiday snaps they got so just easily rattled.”
Mr Storey said: “This is him passing comment about his earlier stop at the airport, making reference to having a second phone.”
In his evidence, Melia told jurors the stickers were designed to “start a conversation.” Giving evidence on Friday last week, Melia said he had not intended to incite racial hatred with the stickers, adding: “The idea was always conversations about topics. They are topics like the grooming gangs or rape gangs that have been prevalent across this country. The idea of the messages is to start a conversation, not to make someone feel intimidated.”
He said the stickers were intended to be put on street furniture such as lamp posts, benches, bus stops and “places people are waiting”. “You go round Leeds and there’s stickers on everything. There must be a reason people are putting them out there,” Melia told jurors.
Asked by his barrister, Richard Canning, whether he intended for the stickers to be seen, the defendant said: “Oh god yes, it’s not just for my own pleasure. What use would a sticker be sat in your bedroom drawers? I intended for them to be public.”
Melia told jurors he described himself as “pro-British or a white advocate”, and was intending to stand as a candidate for a local council for a second time. He denied hating people of different races, saying: “Everyone deserves their own homeland and I wish them well in that homeland.” Jurors were sent out to consider the verdicts at 3.25pm on Thursday after barristers gave their closing speeches.
After the verdicts were delivered on Wednesday, Melia was told he would be sentenced on March 1 by His Honour Judge Tom Bayliss KC. The judge also warned Melia against posting on the internet prior to his sentencing.
He said: “You know perfectly well what happened when members of the public wrote in about your tweeting or Telegraph or whatever it was you were doing. You wrote about the trial…You really must keep quiet about this – tempting though it may be for you. If you must make your views public on this or any other aspect of it, it wouldn’t go well for you.”
Melia was bailed until his sentencing hearing.
Following the verdicts, Nick Price of the Crown Prosecution Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division said: “Melia was perfectly aware that the stickers he published on his Telegram channel were being downloaded and then stuck up in public places around the country.
“He also knew full well the impact these racially inflammatory stickers were having, and by attempting to remain anonymous, sought to protect himself and others from investigation. He was very deliberate in the manner he wanted to spread his messages of racial hatred, and online messages recovered made it clear that he knew these stickers were being displayed in public and causing damage to public property.
“It is illegal to publish such material intending to stir up racial hatred towards others, and the CPS will not hesitate to bring prosecutions against those who break the law in this way.”
Far-Right Criminals 