Man accused of planning terror attack on shopping centre 'regularly expressed wish to kill Jews'
A Muslim-convert accused of planning a terrorist attack "regularly expressed a wish to kill Jews" and made a joke about going into a synagogue in a suicide vest, a jury has been told.
Listen to this article
, was arrested in Howden, East Yorkshire, with a note which said, "Throw all grenades into crowd; Shoot bystanders; Stab anyone who comes close; Do not get taken alive", Leeds Crown Court heard on Thursday.
Katherine Robinson, prosecuting, said another note contained instructions about how to make mustard gas, and that a crossbow and a knife had been found by police at Richardson's home.
Ms Robinson told the jury the defendant had accessed material online which "shows his interest in and affiliation with extreme Islamist ideology, that includes material depicting and glorifying terrorist actions".
She said: "He regularly expressed a wish to kill Jews, for example using the terminology - the pillagers, the big noses and the money.
"He suggested going to Palestine to fight Jews and he's searched for how to volunteer for Hamas from the UK and how to get to Palestine.
"He made a joke about going into a synagogue in a suicide vest."
Opening the prosecution case, Ms Robinson said the charges faced by Richardson "all relate to his support of Islamic extremism, and his actions in furtherance of that, including, we say, planning a terrorist atrocity".
The lawyer said one possible target of the defendant was the Meadowhall shopping centre, near Sheffield, which was referenced by Richardson in his social media posts.
Richardson, of Oliver Close, Goole, denies preparing for acts of terrorism.
He also denies the collection of information of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism and distributing terrorist publications.