David Parnham also wrote to Theresa May and David Cameron in two-year hate campaign

A white supremacist who triggered a full-scale security alert after sending fake anthrax to the Queen with a threatening note saying “the clowns r coming 4 you” has been jailed for 12 and a half years.

David Parnham penned similar letters to the then prime minister, Theresa May, the former PM David Cameron, two bishops and the Home Office during a two-year hate campaign.

The 36-year-old IT systems analyst also sent “Punish a Muslim Day” letters to mosques and high-profile figures last year, encouraging violence against followers of Islam, the Old Bailey heard.

In a bid to cause alarm, he posted white powder in the hope it would be mistaken for anthrax, the court was told. When he sent the Queen an envelope containing the substance, it prompted a chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear response, with royal household members kept separate from other staff and becoming anxious for their health and the safety of colleagues.

Parnham, from Lincoln, pleaded guilty to 15 offences relating to hundreds of letters written between June 2016 and June 2018. They included encouraging murder, making hoaxes involving noxious substances and bombs, sending letters with intent to cause distress, and encouraging offences.

Sentencing him on Tuesday, Judge Anthony Leonard QC said: “You have yet to appreciate the seriousness of what you have done and seem to want to return to the community at the earliest opportunity to live with your parents.”

The judge explained Parnham had been suffering from an autistic spectrum disorder but rejected the suggestion he was psychotic at the time of the offences.

Parnham will serve his sentence in hospital until he is well enough to be transferred to prison. His failure to appreciate the harm he caused to the Muslim and wider community meant the risk of reoffending was greater, the judge added.

Dr Martin Lock, a psychiatrist, told the court on Monday that Parnham felt disgusted and ashamed of his actions but did not regard them as very serious. Lock also said he was concerned Parnham had attempted to mislead medical professionals. Another psychiatrist said the defendant was experiencing a psychotic illness and had felt paranoia and suspiciousness, particularly towards religious groups and prominent individuals.

Parnham claimed he did not remember writing to the Queen.

The Liberal Democrat peer Lord Hussain previously told of his “total shock” at receiving one of the “poison” letters after it was forwarded to his home address from the House of Lords while he was unwell.

In a victim impact statement read to the court, he said: “As I read it for the first time I felt total shock at its contents as well as fear, not only for myself but for my family, my home and all other Muslims. I have lived in this country for 47 years and have never before seen or read anything like this.”

Parnham was caught through DNA, handwriting and fingerprints. His activities first came to the attention of authorities in July 2016 when Sheffield mail centre intercepted seven letters containing harmless white powder. A further 11 letters were discovered to have been delivered, the court heard.

In December 2016, Parnham wrote to Dylann Roof – a white supremacist responsible for murdering nine black parishioners in Charleston, South Carolina – telling him: “I just wanted to thank you for opening my eyes.”

In February 2017, letters were sent to mosques and Islamic centres around the country, including one in Hull that contained a drawing of a sword with a swastika on it cutting someone’s head off, with the words: “You are going to be slaughtered very soon.” It was signed “Muslim slayer”.



