Thomas Mair allegedly shot and stabbed MP in Birstall, near Leeds

He denies murder of 41-year-old mother of two days before EU vote

Jo Cox 'cowardly' killed outside constituency surgery, jurors told

Old Bailey prosecutor says 'brutal' murder was for 'political cause'

Mair allegedly said 'Britain first' while killing Remain supporter

He is also said to have researched Remainer William Hague

Labour MP's death prompted wave of grief from politicians

Actress Tracy Brabin new Batley and Spen MP after by-election

A white supremacist carried out the “political” murder of Labour MP and Remain campaigner Jo Cox after conducting internet searches on fellow Remainer William Hague, and Ian Gow, an MP killed by the IRA, a court heard.

Thomas Mair, 53, shouted “Britain first, this is for Britain” as he shot and stabbed the MP for Batley and Spen a week before the EU referendum, a jury at the Old Bailey in London was told.

Mrs Cox tried desperately to defend herself as she was shot three times and stabbed 15 times in a “brutal” and “cowardly” pre-meditated attack.

When Mr Mair was stopped by police 20 minutes later, he held up his hands and told them: “It’s me … I am a political activist,” it is claimed.

Mr Mair denies murdering Mrs Cox on June 16 this year, as well as three other charges relating to the attack.

Court artist sketch of Thomas Mair (back left) in the dock at the Old Bailey credit: Elizabeth Cook/PA

Mrs Cox, 41, a mother-of two, was the first MP to be murdered since Mr Gow was assassinated by the IRA in 1990, and the first female MP to be killed.

Her parents and sister were in court to hear terrible details of her death described to jurors by the prosecutor, Richard Whittam QC.

He told the jury: “The circumstances of her death are shocking. It is important that you do not let emotion or sympathy affect your judgment in this case.”

He said that on each of the three days leading up to the murder, Mr Mair had visited public libraries in Batley and in Birstall.

There, he used computers to look up Mrs Cox’s Twitter page and a Wikipedia page about her, searched for Mr Hague – a fellow Remain campaigner from Yorkshire – and answers to the question: “Is a .22 round deadly enough to kill with one shot to a human’s head?”.

A gun that was presented in evidence during the trial of Thomas Mair credit: West Yorkshire Police/PA

The following day he looked up Nazi Party material, political prisoners, serial killers, the human liver and vertebral column and the crime of matricide, or killing one’s mother.

While he was there, he asked a library worker: “Do you have to book an appointment to see Jo Cox?”

On June 15, the day before the murder, he went to the library at Birstall, where Mrs Cox would be attacked, and carried out searches into the Ku Klux Klan and people murdered by them, material about Hitler’s Waffen SS, coffins, lying in repose, lying in state and pauper’s funerals.

Mr Whittam told the jury: “You may think that it helps you to understand his apparent motive in deciding to carry out this murder.”

The knife that was shown to the jury during the trial of Thomas Mair, accused of murdering Jo Cox credit: West Yorkshire Police

On the day of the murder, Mr Mair walked to the centre of Birstall carrying a brown coat, which the prosecutor suggested may have been “to allow him to have the firearm drawn and ready to use without it being visible”.

Mr Whittam said: “Thomas Mair’s intention was to kill [Mrs Cox] in what was a planned and pre-meditated murder for a political and/or ideological cause.”

Mrs Cox was with her manager Fazila Aswat and senior case worker Sandra Major driving to Birstall library to hold a surgery from 1pm-2pm. Moments after they had got out of their car, the killer pounced.

Shelly Morris, a care home worker who dialled 999 as the attack was going on, recalled hearing “a loud bang, like a popping sound, there was also a loud piercing scream”. She saw a man holding “what looked to be a large steak knife with a jagged blade” and saw him “swing the knife in a stabbing motion”.

Ms Aswat repeatedly hit Mr Mair with her handbag, said Mr Whittam, but “was forced to retreat in fear of her own life being taken”. She heard him saying: “Britain first, this is for Britain, Britain will always come first.”

Ms Major said that after Mrs Cox had been shot and stabbed, she “tried to get away from him” but was shot again. She heard the killer shout: “Make Britain independent.” Bernard Kenny, 77, was parked outside the library when he heard a bang.

He got out of his car, intending to wrestle the attacker to the ground, but Mr Mair stabbed him once in the abdomen, it is claimed. Mr Kenny collapsed in the doorway of a nearby sandwich shop.

He survived the attack. Another witness said Mr Mair walked away from the MP “only to return seconds later with a firearm”.

Labour's Jo Cox after being elected as MP for Batley and Spen credit: Julian Hughes

Mr Whittam said: “The defendant then stood above Jo Cox and discharged the firearm at close range, firstly towards her head and then towards her chest … he appears to have returned to make sure she was fatally wounded”.

Jurors were shown pictures of the gun, a .22 Weihrauch rifle with the stock and most of its barrel removed.

Mr Mair, of Birstall, West Yorkshire, denies murder, inflicting grievous bodily harm with intent, possession of a firearm and possession of a knife. The trial continues.

04:31PM End of day 1

End of day 1

Proceedings have now finished for the day.

The trial continues and is expected to last two weeks.

04:01PM Desperate attempts to save Jo Cox’s life

Desperate attempts to save Jo Cox’s life

The court heard of the desperate attempts to save Ms Cox’s life.

Mr Whittam said: “Fazila Aswat tended her and pleaded with her to think of her children in a desperate bid to stimulate her so she could stay alive.” She was pronounced dead at 13.48pm.

A post mortem showed Ms Cox had 15 different stab wounds, that had penetrated her heart, lungs, stomach and liver. She had three gunshot wounds, one to her lower chest and two to her head.

Mair allegedly made off down the street after the murder. At around 13.10 he was seen by two policemen who shouted to stop and drop the bag he was carrying. The defendant eventually released the bag and raised his hands to shoulder height, saying: “It’s me.”

Mair allegedly told the officers he had a knife in his pocket and had a firearm in his bag. A clear plastic bag of ammunition was found in his trouser pockets. When one of the police officers found what appeared to be a firearm, Mair said: “I am a political activist”.

03:38PM 'He went to try and help. He was stabbed'

'He went to try and help. He was stabbed'

Mr Carter-Kenny was stabbed after going to Mrs Cox's aid, the court heard.

He was waiting in his car outside the library for his wife Doreen when he saw the MP being attacked.

Mr Whittam said: "He saw Jo Cox, who he recognised, and he described the attack. He heard a bang and saw Jo Cox roll into the road and then he saw a man 'shoving it - a knife - at her'.

"He went to try and help. He was stabbed."

A local taxi driver, Rashid Hussain, saw what happened as he dropped off a fare.

The court heard that when he challenged Mair, saying "leave her alone", the defendant warned him: "You just go away, otherwise I'm gonna stab you." He also alleges Mair said "Britain first" or similar.

Another witness, Jack Foster, saw Mair shoot Mrs Cox and shout "Britain first" the court heard. Mr Foster then shouted "f****** leave her alone" but Mair shot the MP a second time, jurors were told.

03:21PM A loud bang... and then a piercing scream: Court hears how 'sustained' attack unfolded

A loud bang... and then a piercing scream: Court hears how 'sustained' attack unfolded

On June 16, Jo Cox was with her manager, Fazila Aswat, and her senior caseworker, Sandra Major.

Ms Azwat drove the three to the surgery, due to be held from 1pm to 2pm, in a silver Vauxhall Astra and they arrived in Market Street and parked near the library. All three of them got out.

The attack started at 12.52am, the court heard, and was captured in the distance by local council CCTV cameras.

Mr Whittam said it was “a dynamic, fast moving and shocking incident”.

He said: “It was a sustained attack with a firearm being fired and a dagger-like knife being used to inflict multiple stab wounds”.

Police forensics officers arrive at the scene of Jo Cox's death in June credit: Ben Lack for The Telegraph

Mr Whittam told the court that Shelley Morris, a worker at the Priestly Care Home, said she heard “a loud bang…like a popping sound… There was also a loud piercing scream.”

She looked over a wall at the Care Home and saw a man holding “what looked to be a large steak knife with a jagged blade” and saw him “swing the knife with a stabbing motion”.

Ms Azwat said Mair approached Mrs Cox from behind and stabbed her before shooting her. During the attack, she hit the defendant several times with her handbag, before she retreated for fear of her life.

Mr Whittam said: “During the course of the attack, she heard the defendant say ‘Britain First, this is for Britain, Britain will always come first.”

02:59PM Jo Cox's killer also researched prominent Remain campaigner William Hague, jurors told

Jo Cox's killer also researched prominent Remain campaigner William Hague, jurors told

Thomas Mair had lived locally in Birstall for many years and his internet usage and items found in his house suggested he “had strong political and ideological interests”, said prosecutor Richard Whittam QC.

The evening before the attack, Mair was spotted in the library at about 5pm. He was a regular visitor to use the computers and logged onto the internet for about an hour.

The court heard details of his internet searches in the weeks before the alleged murder.

A month earlier, on May 17, Mair had accessed a Wikipedia page for the Occidental Observer, “a far right online publication that covers politics and society from a white nationalist and anti-Semitic perspective”, the court was told.

On June 13, he had researched Jo Cox’s Wikipedia and Twitter pages, and researched William Hague, another prominent Yorkshire-based Remain campaigner, as well as Ian Gow, the last sitting MP to be murdered, jurors heard.

Police officers stand outside the home of Thomas Mair after Jo Cox's death credit: CRAIG BROUGH/Reuters

He also searched .22 ammunition, including answers to the question "is a .22 round deadly enough to kill with one shot to a human’s head?"

On the eve of Ms Cox’s death, Mair had looked at web pages on far right politicians, members of the Klu Klux Klan and material about the Waffen SS, jurors were told.

02:35PM Attacker repeatedly shouted 'Britain First' during pre-meditated murder for political cause, jurors told

Attacker repeatedly shouted 'Britain First' during pre-meditated murder for political cause, jurors told

Gardener Thomas Mair repeatedly shouted "Britain First" as he shot and stabbed Jo Cox a week before the EU referendum, the prosecutor said.

Richard Whittam QC told jurors how mother of two Mrs Cox had supported the Remain campaign leading up to the referendum on June 23.

Mr Whittam QC added: "During the course of the murder Thomas Mair was heard by a number of witnesses to say repeatedly 'Britain First'."

The prosecutor told jurors: "The murder took place whilst she was performing her role as a Member of Parliament.

"Thomas Mair's intention was to kill her in what was a planned and pre-meditated murder for a political and/or ideological cause."

02:27PM Prosecutor: 'She was brutally murdered by one of her constituents... it was a cowardly attack'

Prosecutor: 'She was brutally murdered by one of her constituents... it was a cowardly attack'

Richard Whittam QC, prosecuting, begins opening the case for the prosecution, saying the circumstances of Jo Cox’s death are “shocking”.

He tells Court Eight in the Old Bailey that the events took place in Market Street in Birstall, near Batley in Kirklees on Thursday, June 16.

Mrs Cox was the 40-year-old MP for Batley and Spen. She was “well known as a hardworking MP and mother of two young children.”

On June 16 she was due to hold a surgery in the library in Market Street, just off the Market Square, between 1pm to 2pm.

Police outside a library in Birstall, West Yorkshire, where MP Jo Cox was holding a constituency meeting before she was attacked credit: Ben Lack for The Telegraph

Mr Whittam told the court: “As she arrived, she was brutally murdered by one of her constituents, this defendant, Thomas Mair.

"It was a cowardly attack by a man armed with a firearm and a knife. Jo cox was shot three times and suffered multiple stab wounds.”

In the course of the attack, a 77-year-old man called Bernard Carter Kenny risked his life to save Ms Cox and was stabbed with the same knife used to stabbed Mrs Cox, the court heard.

Thomas Mair pictured in a court sketch flanked by security guards during a previous hearing credit: Elizabeth Cook/PA

Thomas Mair, with a closely cropped hair and beard, wore a plain blue suit and dark tie as he sat in and listened to the four charges against him.

He denies murder, having a firearm with intent, grievous bodily harm and possession of a dagger.

02:19PM Video: Jo Cox's path to the House of Commons

Video: Jo Cox's path to the House of Commons

As prosecutor Richard Whittam QC begins to open the Crown's case, here's a quick 90-second video to remind you of Jo Cox's career: from Labour activist to a rising star of the party as MP for Batley and Spen.

02:12PM 'She fought for a better world every day': The tributes to Jo Cox

'She fought for a better world every day': The tributes to Jo Cox

View more!

02:04PM Jo Cox's parents pictured arriving at Old Bailey

Jo Cox's parents pictured arriving at Old Bailey

As we await the start of the trial, Jo Cox's parents Jean and Gordon Leadbeater have been pictured arriving at the Old Bailey.

The jury was sworn in this morning and we are expecting the trial to begin with the prosecution case opening after the lunch break in the next few minutes. Stay with us for updates.

Jean and Gordon Leadbeater arrive at the Old Bailey credit: DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP/Getty

01:52PM Who is murder trial defendant Thomas Mair, the volunteer gardener?

Who is murder trial defendant Thomas Mair, the volunteer gardener?

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01:41PM Video: How MPs paid tribute to Jo Cox in the House of Commons

Video: How MPs paid tribute to Jo Cox in the House of Commons

01:40PM Who was Labour MP Jo Cox?

Who was Labour MP Jo Cox?

View more!

01:34PM Prosecution set to outline case on Monday afternoon

Prosecution set to outline case on Monday afternoon

A jury has been sworn in for the trial of a man accused of the terror-related murder of Labour MP Jo Cox.

Thomas Mair, 53, allegedly shot and stabbed the 41-year-old outside her constituency surgery in Birstall, near Leeds, on June 16.

He is charged with Mrs Cox's murder, possession of a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence and possession of an offensive weapon - a dagger.

Mair, from Birstall, is also charged with causing grievous bodily harm with intent to Bernard Carter-Kenny on the same date. He denies all the charges against him.

Floral tributes and candles by a picture of Labour MP Jo Cox at a vigil in Parliament Square in London in June credit: DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP

Eight men and four women were sworn in at the Old Bailey on Monday morning to hear the case.

Trial judge Mr Justice Wilkie told them that the prosecution would outline the case at 2pm.

He warned jurors not to do any research on the internet and only discuss the case when they were all together.

He also asked them to avoid watching or reading anything about the case, which had already attracted considerable publicity.

The trial is expected to last for up to three weeks.