Man convicted after ‘all soldiers should die’ message on Facebook

Azhar Ahmed, 20, admitted posting the message in March, but told Huddersfield Magistrates’ Court he thought it was distressing but not offensive.

District Judge Jane Goodwin said Ahmed’s Facebook remarks were “derogatory, disrespectful and inflammatory”.

After the trial, Ahmed left the court by a side door without saying anything and sped off in a waiting car. He avoided a demonstration of about 30 people at the front of the court building, some wearing EDL branded clothing and one flying a union flag.

The demonstrators were heavily outnumbered by police.

Ahmed had been bailed after the district judge told him she wanted a pre-sentence report prepared. He is due back in court for sentence on October 9.

Ahmed posted his message two days after the deaths of Sergeant Nigel Coupe, 33, of 1st Battalion The Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment, Corporal Jake Hartley, 20, Private Anthony Frampton, 20, Private Christopher Kershaw, 19, Private Daniel Wade, 20, and Private Daniel Wilford, 21, all of 3rd Battalion the Yorkshire Regiment.

Ahmed’s message said: “People gassin about the deaths of Soldiers! What about the innocent familys who have been brutally killed.

“The women who have been raped. The children who have been sliced up!

“Your enemy’s were the Taliban not innocent harmful familys.

“All soldiers should DIE & go to HELL! THE LOWLIFE F****N SCUM!

“Gotta problem. Go cry at your soldiers grave and wish him hell because that’s where he is going.”

Ahmed told the court he immediately started to receive critical comments and realised the second half was “unacceptable”.

But he denied it was “grossly offensive”, telling a district judge he thought it would have been “upsetting” and caused “distress”.

Ahmed, of Fir Avenue, Ravensthorpe, Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, told the court he was only trying to make the point that many other deaths in Afghanistan were being ignored.

He said he had no idea it would cause so much upset and as soon as he realised what reaction it was having he deleted it.

Ahmed said: “I didn’t intend to insult them at the time.

“When I read back on it, that’s when I realised I had actually insulted and upset a lot of people.”

He said he replied with apologies to many people and when some told him they had lost relatives in Afghanistan he realised how serious it was.

Niall Carlin, prosecuting, said the parents of one of the six soldiers who died saw the posting on the internet. He also read the statement of one woman, Ashleigh Craig, who went to the same school as Ahmed and who had lost two friends in Afghanistan.

The court heard Ms Craig was “angered, upset and disgusted” and reported it to the police.

The prosecutor also said the biscuit firm Fox’s was inundated with complaints after Ahmed said he worked there on Facebook. Another man with the same name had to be given special police protection when people assumed he was responsible.