Self-described 'genocidal racist monster' jailed after BBC investigation

Thomas Webster was investigated by police after comments he made to an undercover journalist in a BBC programme

Warning: This article contains graphic accounts of racist and violent language

A former tax worker who described himself as "the ultimate genocidal racist monster" has been jailed for inciting hatred online after he was exposed by a BBC investigation.

Thomas Webster was sacked by HMRC and investigated by police after comments he made to an undercover journalist in the BBC programme 'Unmasked: Extreme Far Right'.

Webster, 29, from Lapworth, Warwickshire, admitted 10 counts of stirring up racial hatred online, including ones calling for the killing and extinction of his racial "enemies".

Webster also admitted to stirring up religious hatred and another count of stirring up hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation. He was sentenced to two years at Warwick Crown Court.

News imageA white man with brown hair with a dark suit and blue shirt puts his hands over his eyes as he walks down the street
Thomas Webster, arriving here at Warwick Crown Court on Monday, was investigated by police after comments he made to an undercover journalist in a BBC programme

In his online posts, Webster said he wanted Jewish and gay people to be tortured and executed.

Webster also said he wanted to kill all Muslims until they were "globally extinct."

In one instance, he said if a migrant hotel was placed on his road he would "prepare for murder and prison time, I am serious".

Webster was a member of the far right group Patriotic Alternative when BBC Wales Investigates' undercover reporter secretly recorded him at two of the group's events in 2024.

He was filmed saying that in his job at HMRC he liked to "deliberately" give non-white people "bad information which sounds interesting, like I'm deliberately trying to sabotage them."

Webster was dismissed by HMRC in February 2025, a month after the programme was broadcast.

News imageWebster, who is wearing a suit, holding his phone; the screen has been blurred
Thomas Webster said on social media that 'the next Hitler' would be a man like him

The HMRC said it took breaches of its standards "extremely seriously" and had "robust processes" in place to investigate concerns.

"Where standards are not met, we act decisively," HMRC said in a statement.

"Following an internal disciplinary process, the individual concerned was dismissed from HMRC and ceased to be employed by the department in February 2025."

Talking to an undercover BBC reporter, Webster self-identified as a "white totalitarianist" who believed in "a world where white becomes the default human race... all other races will be extinct."

Describing himself as "a guy who seeks trouble" while on a hike with other Patriotic Alternative members, he boasted that he would have "crushed [the] skulls" of a group of non-white men if they had walked near to him.

Following the BBC programme, police opened an investigation and linked Webster to several social media accounts, mainly on X.

News imageWebster, smiling, wearing a camouflage top and holding an England flag over one shoulder
Thomas Webster was filmed at the 2024 Patriotic Alternative summer camp by an undercover BBC journalist

He was arrested for inciting racial hatred in September 2025 and police used details on his phone and computer to confirm the accounts were his. He was charged in July and pleaded guilty last month.

A number of the offending posts were still visible on X in the weeks after Webster pleaded guilty, as well as dozens of others in which he used the most extreme racist language.

In these additional posts, which did not form part of the charges, Webster praised Adolf Hitler and the Nazis and told several prominent politicians that they should be killed or subjected to sexual violence.

In one of his X posts, Webster described himself as a "genocidal racist monster."

He described his wishes for people of several races to be killed and in one post said "the next Hitler will be a man like me!"

After BBC contacted X about the posts, they were taken down - but the company did not comment further.

Days before Webster's sentencing, BBC News found another active Substack account appearing to belong to him.

The account shared posts discussing Webster's arrest, as well as intimate details of his personal life.

It also included several comments about race, including one calling for the "total genetic extinction" of people from South Asia.

One comment claimed that these posts were made in spite of bail conditions heavily limiting Webster's internet use and explicitly preventing him from communicating via social media.

After the BBC contacted Substack about the content, most of the posts were taken down, although one for which Webster was charged is still visible. The company did not respond further.

News imageWebster, who is wearing a suit, showing an undercover reporter something on his phone; the screen has been blurred
Warwick Crown Court heard Thomas Webster was referred to an anti-terrorist programme four times, the first of which was in 2017 because of his association with a far right group

Warwick Crown Court heard Webster had been referred four times to the UK Government-led Prevent programme, a scheme aimed to stop people becoming terrorists.

The court also heard police found a crossbow in the attic of his property, which was still in its wrapping.

Jamie Scott, prosecuting, told the court that the CPS took a "proportionate approach" to charging him with 12 offences - but asked it be noted that there was "a raft" of similar material posted online by Webster.

His defence lawyer Susan Guest said Webster had a long-standing difficulty around social interaction and anxiety and said he became "more isolated" where his views were "reinforced rather than challenged" by people online.

"He almost lived in a bubble and this online community reinforced his views," Guest told the court.

"That bubble subsequently popped and he now has to take responsibility for those actions."

Sentencing Webster to two years, Judge Anthony Potter said he had been given numerous opportunities to show remorse and change his behaviour.

"Talk is very very cheap," he told Webster. "It has allowed you to escalate your offending and propagate the most harmful views.

"I cannot accept that there is a realistic prospect of rehabilitation in the community. I'd be failing in my public duty if I didn't sent you to custody."

Frank Ferguson, the Chief Crown Prosecutor for the CPS, said inciting racial hatred was a "very serious offence" which went "beyond any debate about freedom of speech."

"Expressing a wish for people to be killed… Jewish people, Muslim people, black people, south-asian people, immigrants and LGBTQ+ community as well… and encouraging other people to express similar views.

"It's not just about what he might do, it's what he might be encouraging others to do by his words," he said.

Det Ch Supt Alison Hurst, Head of Counter Terrorism Policing for the West Midlands, said Webster had been investigated previously for racially aggravated offences and thanked BBC Wales for bringing him to their attention again.

"Parts of the evidence from that documentary has been presented to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which has led to the prosecution and sentencing," she said.

Webster was given a two-year sentence, where he'll serve half in prison and a year on licence.

If you or someone you know has been affected by the issues raised in this story, information about available help and support can be found viaBBC Action Line.