Anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist who encouraged Chris Whitty attack found guilty

During a two-week trial, the prosecution said that Ruane believed conspiracy theories about a “hidden agenda” in the government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.

While some of his expletive-laden posts – made in Telegram groups with thousands of users – expressed general anger, some advocated violence against specific individuals.

When it was announced that that children would be receiving the Covid-19 vaccination, Ruane said of those who manufactured and administered vaccines that he was “all for hunting them down” and “executing them where they stand”.

Replying to a post about Sir Chris, he suggested that “all it would take is… whacking [the] target over the back of head with a rounders bat but a mace (a piece of metal ball and chain)”.

This, he claimed, “would turn said target into a vegetable for the rest of its life”.

In response to the creator of the AstraZeneca vaccine getting a standing ovation at Wimbledon, Ruane posted that it was “a shame there was not a sharp shooter” to take them out.

The court also heard Ruane referred to executing politicians.

Prosecutor Julia Faure Walker said it was likely the Crown would argue that Ruane had specifically targeted individuals with encouragements of violence.

Ms Faure Walker had told jurors that the posts spanned many months and encouraged serious violence and disruption designed to influence the government or intimidate a section of the public.

Ruane’s posts reached a “very large audience” through two groups – one of which had 18,000 users and the other 8,000 – she said, suggesting some who viewed his posts could “have a range of susceptibilities”.