A Covid denier amassed an armoury of blades, crossbows and arrows as he called for a violent uprising during the pandemic, a court has heard.
Paul Martin, 60, is on trial at the Old Bailey charged with encouraging terrorism on a Telegram group entitled The Resistance UK and having weapons “for the purposes of terrorism”.
In 16,000 posts, Martin allegedly called for the use of explosives, “serious violence” and “disruption” to influence the UK government or intimidate the public between December 2020 and September 2021.
Opening his trial on Monday, prosecutor Julia Faure Walker said: “He was vehemently against the measures brought in by the then-government in response to the pandemic, including the lockdown and vaccine rollout.
“He believed the pandemic was fake and the vaccine was dangerous and designed to be so and the people needed to ‘wake up’ to what he believed.
“It was this ideological cause that drove the messages encouraging violence and other action.”
Ms Faure Walker said that rather than restricting himself to lawful protest, the defendant had repeatedly referred to “serious violence, criminal damage and disruption of electrical communication systems”.
Posting under the username Perpetual Truth, allegedly Martin wrote: “The simple fact there is no pandemic, never has been.
“The main goal was to genocide all they can and enslave the survivors and make the children sterile with poison.
“That has been their target for decades….Total control of humanity and absolute enslavement.”
He allegedly wrote that it was “not a game” but “reality”, adding: “The biggest hoax perpetuated on humanity on a global scale.”
He claimed the vaccine programme was not what it appeared to be and involved “fake vaccine jabs”, “actors” and “paid off people”, jurors heard.
He allegedly linked Covid jabs with the rollout of 5G mobile phone technology, claiming: “Vaccine is a poison designed to kill you off over a short period.”
He wrote that 5G “will be a trigger” and the second dose of the vaccine would be the “kill shot”, the court was told.
In December 2020, the defendant allegedly wrote: “It is a war you better get ready to smash skulls and destroy evil.”
Paul Martin outside the Old Bailey (James Manning/PA)
PA Wire
Martin allegedly called for attacks on 5G and CCTV, saying: “If small groups hit main shit all over the country they be running around like flies.”
In another post, he allegedly stated: “Target their shit – council offices, police station, road works. Take down rail as well as they cannot get their drones to work.”
He allegedly went on: “Freedom fighters are classed as terrorists. Wake up.”
To counter police infiltration, Martin developed a “ruse” that he was writing a book entitled “Two steps forward, one step back”, which turned into a running joke among Telegram users, jurors heard.
In the Telegram messages, Martin also referred to his weapons and encouraged others to acquire and use them in attacks, the jury was told.
Two crossbows, arrows and blades were found when police visited his home in September 2021, the court heard.
The defendant allegedly had joined Telegram group The Resistance UK in December 2020 and his posts made up some 4% of messages to the 8,000 members, the court heard.
Ms Faure Walker said: “It follows, the posts he was making reached a very large audience.”
As the name suggested, at least some of the members resisted the lockdown and other measures imposed during the Covid-19 pandemic, jurors were told.
Given its size, Ms Faure Walker said there was no way Martin could have known all the group members, or how susceptible they might be to his influence.
Martin, of Suffolk Road, Croydon, has admitted having a stun gun but denied the other two charges against him.
The Old Bailey trial was adjourned until Tuesday.
