Leeds man jailed after handwritten note containing gun powder recipe found

A Leeds man has been jailed after he kept a handwritten gun powder recipe.

Martyn Paul Gilleard, 49, of Town Street in Armley was jailed for three years and nine months and made the subject of an extended licence period for four years following the conviction. A judge also said he will be subject to a Serious Crime Prevention Order for five years and terrorism notification requirements for ten years.

Gilleard admitted one charge of possessing information of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, contrary to Section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000. The document was recovered from his home address during an intelligence led search by West Yorkshire Police on May 28, this year and passed to Counter Terrorism Policing North East for further investigation.

He entered a guilty plea when he appeared at the Old Bailey in June. Detective Chief Superintendent James Dunkerley, Head of Counter Terrorism Policing North East, said: “Officers were concerned to discover a handwritten recipe for black powder during a search at Gilleard’s home in May; a recipe later verified by experts as potentially viable.

“Possessing information about the manufacture of explosives will always raise serious questions. Gilleard has chosen not to explain or defend the presence of the recipe in his home, instead pleading guilty to possessing information useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism.”

Leeds Live