A teenage far-right extremist has been jailed for more than five years for sharing terrorist documents and attacking a transgender woman by kicking her in the head before posting “best day ever” online.
Alex Edwards, formerly known as Alex Hutton, was sentenced at Winchester crown court for causing actual bodily harm, disseminating terrorist material and having a bladed article in a public place.
Edwards, 19, from Swansea, was also convicted of breaching a criminal behaviour order for a previous offence of distributing terrorist material in 2022.
Sentencing Edwards to five years and four months in custody and five years on extended licence, Judge Parker KC told him: “It’s quite clear that you appear to have blurred the distinction between holding and expressing legitimate political views and enforcing doctrines through acts of extreme violence.”
He said Edwards had a “significant lack of empathy for others” and told him: “In my judgment, you are somebody who now poses a significant risk of harm and you are, in the statutory definition, dangerous.
“You have an entrenched mindset of hatred towards others.
“I am concerned about the escalation of your behaviour from words and videos transmitted over the internet to violent action, whether in the form of producing a knife in public or especially the assault in broad daylight in order to glorify your extremist views.”
Catherine Farrelly KC, prosecuting, told the court Edwards attacked the trans woman at a park in Swansea on 20 May last year while wearing a balaclava and accompanied by another man.
She said Edwards made transphobic comments towards the victim, who is a university student. The victim threw a can of drink at the two attackers.
Farrelly said: “The defendant then swung a powerful kick at her head and struck her to the right side of her head.
“She responded to that by saying: ‘You have to try a lot harder than that.’ The defendant responded by kicking her with force a number of times.”
The prosecutor said the victim was treated in hospital for her injuries, including an imprint of the defendant’s shoe on her face.
She said that the defendant later boasted on social media about the attack, posting: “Still loving my switch kick,” with a laughing face emoji, which she said referred to a move in mixed martial arts, in which Edwards had been trained.
He also posted: “Best day ever.”
Farrelly said Edwards had a history of offending, dating back to when he was 13 and was given a youth conditional caution for making a bomb hoax about a school. At 14 he was made the subject of a parenting order for sending racist messages to a mosque.
She said Edwards had breached the criminal behaviour order by sharing on Instagram and Telegram antisemitic, racist, homophobic and extremist far-right videos, pictures and manuals which included posts praising nazism.
Farrelly said the knife offence related to a posted photograph of Edwards in a balaclava pointing a large knife at the camera in a public street.
She added that Edwards said in police interview that his behaviour had been because “he thought it looked cool” and he had made the offensive remarks because “he wanted to look edgy and cool”.
She also said he described himself as “rightwing but not a Nazi” and added that he “got carried away with what he posted as he would get reactions which he liked”.
Thomas Schofield, defending, said Edwards had a “neurological impairment” with signs of autistic spectrum disorder, Asperger’s syndrome and ADHD, and added: “He is a particularly immature 19-year-old.”
Bethan David, the head of the counter-terrorism division at the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “Alex Hutton is not simply a fantasist that held extreme views, he is a dangerous young man.
“His unprovoked attack was driven by hate and he poses a substantial risk to other groups and society as a whole.
“He celebrated terrorist acts of white supremacy and encouraged his friends and associates on various social media and messaging platforms to join him in his extreme and disturbing views.
“The CPS will always prosecute those who encourage acts of terrorism and hate to protect the public.”
Det Ch Insp Leanne Williams, head of investigations at Counter Terrorism Policing Wales, said:
“Alex Hutton, motivated by hate, engaged in a horrendous and unprovoked attack on a defenceless young girl who was minding her own business one afternoon in a Swansea park in May 2023.
“There is no doubt that the attack will have lasting effects on this young person and I really hope today’s outcome provides her with some comfort.
“Furthermore, Hutton demonstrated a clear intention to spread his hatred across the internet encouraging acts of terrorism. “Officers from Counter Terrorism Policing Wales uncovered his actions during a detailed investigation, which then led us to the assault that took place earlier in the year.”
