A British man has been sentenced to 18 months in prison after posting two anti immigration tweets following a deadly car attack at a Christmas market in Germany, despite the posts being viewed a total of just 33 times.Luke Yarwood, 36, was jailed at Bournemouth Crown Court after a judge found the messages were intended to stir up racial hatred and incite violence. The tweets were published in late December 2024 in the aftermath of the Magdeburg Christmas market attack, in which six people were killed.The court heard that Yarwood made a series of anti-Muslim and anti-immigration comments between December 21, 2024 and January 29, 2025, during a period when misinformation online suggested the attacker in Germany was an Islamist extremist..One of the tweets responded to a post claiming thousands of Germans wanted their country back. Yarwood replied by urging people to target migrant hotels and burn them down.A second tweet, written in response to a post by GB News, called for violence against migrants, members of Parliament and Parliament itself, urging people to “take over by force.”Prosecutor Siobhan Linsley told the court that while the two specific tweets attracted limited views, they carried the potential to trigger disorder, particularly given Yarwood’s proximity to migrant hotels in Bournemouth.She added that other posts made by Yarwood during the same period received significantly higher engagement and that he had replied to large accounts with substantial followings..Linsley argued the comments formed part of a pattern of behaviour over more than a month and reflected what she described as a rabid dislike of immigrants, Muslims and other minority groups.She said the wider national context, including ongoing protests around asylum seeker accommodation and previous incidents of disorder, heightened the seriousness of the case.During sentencing, defence counsel said Yarwood was in a dispute with family members and that his posts had been reported to police by a relative.Emma O’Callaghan, Yarwood's sister said no statement was provided by her husband to police or the media and rejected the characterization of family relations as a feud, calling it untrue and unrelated to the case.O’Callaghan said the narrative was a false account advanced by Yarwood and his mother and alleged it formed part of what she described as an 18 month harassment campaign directed at herself and her young daughter, which she said resulted in a non molestation order being granted.Defence lawyer Nick Tucker argued the tweets were the product of a socially isolated man at a low point in his life and had no real world impact..He said the posts were seen by an extremely limited audience and described them as impotent rantings rather than credible incitement.Tucker told the court Yarwood no longer held extremist views, suffered from ill health and would struggle in custody. He also said imprisonment would prevent him from seeing his son and urged the judge to suspend the sentence.Judge Jonathan Fuller rejected the request, stating that only immediate custody was appropriate. In sentencing, he said Yarwood had a preoccupation with immigrants and a particular obsession with Islam, alongside some extreme right wing views.The judge said freedom of expression was not an absolute right and that the law clearly prohibited the stirring up of racial hatred. He described the tweets as odious and among the clearest examples of words designed to incite hatred and violence.“The continuing safety and stability of our communities are undermined by actions such as yours,” Fuller said, adding that the offences were serious and carried the potential for serious consequences.The case has drawn comparisons to other recent prosecutions related to online speech following violent incidents, as courts continue to weigh the limits of free expression against public order and safety.
