Twitter troll, 42, who posted sickening messages praising killing of teacher Ann Maguire is JAILED for eight weeks

Robert Riley from Port Talbot wrote offensive tweets about teacher's death

Told followers he would kill 'all the b****** teachers' at the Leeds school

Ann Maguire killed at Corpus Christi School, Leeds during Spanish class



Riley jailed for eight weeks after pleading guilty to sending the messages



A Twitter troll who posted abusive messages about the fatal stabbing of teacher Ann Maguire has been jailed for eight weeks.

Robert Riley, 42, of Port Talbot, South Wales, told his followers he would have killed 'all the b****** teachers' at Corpus Christ School, Leeds, where the 61-year-old was fatally stabbed on April 28.



Jobless Riley, a former heroin addict, sent the shocking tweets two days after the teacher's death, showing 'complete disregard' for the tragedy, his sentencing hearing was told.



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Handcuffed: Robert Riley, 42, is taken away to the cells after being jailed for eight weeks for sending sickening messages about the death of school teacher Ann Maguire

Riley, who uses the Twitter handle @johnriley001, told followers he would have killed 'all of the b*****d teachers' at the Corpus Christi School, Leeds, where Mrs Maguire taught

The former heroin addict tried to shield himself from cameras as he was led away to the cells after the hearing



Swansea Magistrates' Court heard Riley even seemed to revel in his new-found notoriety.

After sending the tweets, Riley, who uses the Twitter handle @johnriley001, told followers he had 'the biggest gob this side of the River Severn'.

He also posted a series of racist tweets claiming Nazi death camp Auschwitz was a 'health spa' and suggesting Muslim babies should be drowned, the court was told.

But at the hearing earlier today, Riley begged for leniency.



He had previously pleaded guilty to one charge of sending a grossly offensive message via a public communications network.

But chairwoman of the bench Georgina Scannell made no secret of her disgust, telling the defendant she had no choice but to send him straight to jail.

Mrs Maguire, 61, was killed during a Spanish class at the school where she had taught for 40 years

After the backlash he received, the jobless defendant tweeted: 'Of all the sick things I've tweeted... it's the teacher from Leeds that outrages everyone the most'

Riley, a full-time carer for a 44-year-old woman, enjoys going on Twitter for 'social banter' but does not understand the site's 'vastness', the court was told

She said: 'The offensive messages outraged the public. You had complete disregard for the tragic death of Ann Maguire.

'Besides this, countless other vile messages were made by you. The bench finds these were racially and religious aggravated.

'The offences are so serious that only a period of immediate custody can be justified.'

Riley, who hid his face as he was taken down to the cells, had previously remained unapologetic following a backlash from other Twitter users.

He had tweeted: 'Of all the sick things I’ve tweeted, starvation, genocide, rape and torture, it’s the teacher from Leeds that outrages everyone the most.'

Prosecutor Linda Baker told the court that following a complaint to police, the defendant’s other offensive tweets had come to light.

Among them were messages about the missing Malaysian plane, the Korean ferry disaster and champion tennis player Serena Williams.

The court heard that, at the time of the tweets, Riley was subject to an existing community order for an unrelated offence.

His solicitor Giles Hayes said Riley, a former bus driver who left school aged 15 with no qualifications, lived an insular life.

He said the tweet was a 'a senseless act at a very sensitive time'.

The court also heard from a report compiled by the Probation Service, which said that Riley was a full time carer for a 44-year-old woman.

The report said: 'Because of this he has very little time for social activity out of the house.'

A long row of flowers were left outside the Leeds school after the tragic death of the mother-of-two

Dozens of pupils also wrote tribute messages to the teacher after the killing

It said Riley regarded Twitter as a chance to engage in 'social banter' but he had 'no idea' of the site's 'vastness'.

Since his arrest, the defendant - who was previously jailed for 12 weeks in 2012 - has sought help from counsellors over anger management issues relating to a 'mental nature', the court was told.

Riley is the second person to be charged with the offence in the wake of Mrs Maguire's death.

Jake Newsome, 21, from the Harehills area of Leeds, was released on bail after being charged for the alleged abuse, police said.

He is due to appear before Leeds Magistrates' Court on May 14.

West Yorkshire Police said a 16-year-old Cardiff boy had also been arrested by police on Wednesday following complaints and bailed pending a psychiatric assessment.

A 15-year-old boy appeared in court last week charged with Mrs Maguire's murder and was remanded in custody.



The killing is thought to be the first time a teacher has been stabbed to death in a British classroom and the first murder of a teacher in a school since the 1996 Dunblane massacre.





