A British judge sentenced a self-described “keyboard warrior” to three years in prison over comments he wrote on the social networking site X.

Wayne O’Rourke, 35, received a three-year prison term for inciting racial hate during the most recent anti-immigration demonstrations and rioting.

O’Rourke allegedly spread false information about the Southport mass stabbing incident that claimed the lives of three young girls, implying that the perpetrator was either an illegal immigrant or a Muslim, neither of which were accurate, according to the local Lincolnshire Free Press.

Left-wing activist groups frequently advise their followers to be anonymous during protests, and O’Rourke provided this advice to his 90,000 followers in the run-up to controversial demonstrations.

Sentence termination Judge Catarina Sjolin Knight accused O’Rourke of “instigating” the riots through his social media remarks, stating: “Keyboard warriors like you stoked the fires.”

The words “People of Southport, where the f**k are you? One of O’Rourke’s offensive posts read, “Get out on the street.”

Another remarked, “Sunderland, go on fellas,” next to a photo of a burning automobile in Sunderland.

“In essence, Starmer has spoken out against them.” Hold the line, he said in an additional post on X.

The two additional posts were “Give them hell, boys” and “numbers are crucial”.

In support of O’Rourke, Lucia Harrington told the judge that her client was “caught up in the media frenzy” following the mass stabbing in Southport and that he had no intention of inciting rioting when he created his account.

O’Rourke wants to “re-educate” himself on the things he did incorrectly, according to Harrington.

Lincolnshire Chief Superintendent Kate Anderson made the following statement on the case: “This charge indicates that we will take prompt and decisive action against anyone suspected of distributing dangerous content online.”

“We are still committed to aggressively policing the county and ensuring public safety.

“This demonstration demonstrates that individuals have accountability for their conduct, regardless of whether it takes place in public or on the internet.”

Author: Blake Ambrose