National Action trial witness denies lying
A former member of a banned neo-Nazi organisation has denied exaggerating and lying during his evidence in order to implicate his former associates.
By Daniel De SimoneBBC News Witness Robbie Mullen, 25, said the group National Action had not disbanded despite being outlawed in 2016. Jurors heard Mr Mullen first warned anti-racism charity Hope not Hate of a plan by alleged member Jack Renshaw to murder Labour MP Rosie Cooper. Six men deny membership of a proscribed organisation. Christopher Lythgoe, 32, from Warrington, who is National Action's alleged leader, also denies encouragement to murder for allegedly authorising Renshaw's plot on behalf of the group. Renshaw, 23, of Skelmersdale, Lancashire, has pleaded guilty to preparing an act of terrorism by buying a machete to kill Ms Cooper and has also admitted making a threat to kill police officer Victoria Henderson, who was investigating him for child sex offences and inciting racial hatred. Amber Rudd 'alternative target' Jurors have heard that Renshaw described details of his plan during a meeting attended by several of the defendants at a Warrington pub on 1 July 2017. Mr Mullen, who now works for Hope not Hate, denied telling the charity about a secret recording he made of a conversation with Mr Lythgoe a week after the pub meeting. In the recording, played to jurors last week, Mr Lythgoe can be heard saying that he suggested Home Secretary Amber Rudd as an alternative target to Ms Cooper, but that he had been too drunk to recall some details of Renshaw's plans. Mr Mullen was recorded referring to Renshaw's plot by saying "you could tell he'd planned it completely" - to which Mr Lythgoe replied: "I don't remember. I was too pissed. I don't remember him saying what he was going to do." The alleged leader could also be heard saying that Renshaw "might not be able to go through with any of it" and "I can see him doing a balls up of it". "I mean you can hack away all you like," he could be heard to say in reference to Renshaw's plan to use a machete. He was also recorded saying: "I remember saying don't do it, but if you do - do Amber Rudd." Mr Mullen has said he did not initially tell police about the recording, which was recovered from his phone by detectives, because of "legal advice" which had suggested "let them find it for themselves". Under cross-examination by Crispin Aylett QC, representing Mr Lythgoe, the witness said he had also never told Hope not Hate about a secret recording he made of a conversation with Matthew Collins, who works for the charity and acted as Mr Mullen's main point of contact. During the recording, which was played to jurors, Mr Mullen can be heard answering questions about his police interviews. Mr Mullen said that counter-terrorism detectives had asked him not to speak to anyone about his evidence. When asked why he had recorded the encounter with Mr Collins, he told the Old Bailey: "I didn't really trust anyone at that stage." Addressing the witness, Mr Aylett said: "You've exaggerated aspects of your evidence, told lies, all to get Christopher Lythgoe and others convicted and to bolster your credibility with your paymaster Hope not Hate." Mr Mullen denied this was the case. Adolf Hitler 'was right' Jurors were played an audio recording of a speech from 2016 by Renshaw during which he said Nazi leader Adolf Hitler was "right in many senses", but wrong when he "showed mercy to people who did not deserve mercy." Renshaw told his audience that "the Jew" was "nature's social vermin" and "needs to be eradicated." He added: "this is an eternal, a righteous and a holy war, and we need to show the Jew that this time it's for real. They don't have to fake it." The court saw a video of Renshaw speaking to a crowd in Blackpool in 2016 during which he said: "In World War Two we took the wrong side" and "fought the National Socialists who were there to remove Jewry from Europe once and for all, that's what the final solution was." "Instead we let these parasites live among us and they still do," he told the noisy crowd. Mr Lythgoe, Renshaw and four other defendants all deny membership of National Action between December 2016 and September 2017. The other accused are: Michal Trubini, 35, from Warrington; Garron Helm, 24, from Seaforth, Merseyside; Andrew Clarke, 33, from Prescot, Merseyside; and Matthew Hankinson, 24, from Newton-le-Willows, Merseyside.