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A former police detention officer who posted "racist content" and images showing apparent support for armed members of a Northern Ireland paramilitary group has been issued a community order. William Lloyd-Hughes, 27, from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, was awarded an 18-month community order with two requirements at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London on Wednesday. He had previously pleaded guilty in the same court to posting an image of two flags on September 11, 2022 "in a manner or under such circumstances as to arouse reasonable suspicion" that he was a "member or supporter" of the outlaw. loyalist Ulster Defense Association (UDA) terrorist group.
On Wednesday, prosecutor Gillian Curl said the image in question was a montage of four photos, posted as a tweet, showing people wearing black ski masks and military-style clothing brandishing weapons.
In two of the photos, the gunmen pose in front of UDA flags and the montage is captioned "In God's land where the PRODS are," Ms Curl added.
"Prods" is a Protestant term sometimes used in Northern Ireland, which in this context appears to imply support for the outlaw paramilitary group, the court heard.
Lloyd-Hughes, who worked at Huddersfield Police Station as a civilian staff, also pleaded guilty to one charge under the Communications Act 2003 for sharing highly offensive posts on Twitter on 27 August 2022.
These "highly offensive" tweets were "racist in content and tone," Curl said.
Full details of the offense were not read out in court, but the judge called the posts "hateful" and "racist."
Ms Curl added: "To Mr Lloyd-Hughes' credit, he made a prepared statement when he was arrested and questioned in which he immediately expressed remorse."
Lloyd-Hughes, from Crosland Moor, told police he had limited knowledge of the history of sectarian strife in Northern Ireland and had no intention of publishing anything supporting any banned terrorist organisation.
Lloyd Hughes, who wore a light blue shirt and dark tie and pants, also told officers in December that the racist Twitter posts did not reflect his actual views, according to court documents.
He was "interested in the military" but did not realize they were UDA flags when he posted the image, the court heard.
Lloyd-Hughes, who is a graduate, was employed by West Yorkshire Police as a Detention Officer from February 2022 until his resignation in February this year after the criminal investigation and surveillance investigation by the Independent Office of Police Conduct (IOPC). .
The previously good-natured defendant now works in the kitchen of a local restaurant, the court heard.
In handing down a concurrent community order judgment for the two offences, Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring also imposed a 40-day rehabilitation requirement and said Lloyd-Hughes must complete 100 hours of unpaid work.
You must also pay a surcharge and prosecution costs totaling £199 within seven days.
The IOPC said the charges followed an investigation it led, led by North East Anti-Terror Police, into messages after a mandatory redundancy from the West Yorkshire force last September.
PA wire
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