A 14-year-old boy has been charged with a terrorism offence after police uncovered what they allege was a plan to target two mosques in south London, prompting increased security measures and renewed concern over youth radicalisation.

The teenager, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, has been charged with preparing terrorist acts under Section 5 of the Terrorism Act 2006. The Metropolitan Police said the case is linked to alleged extreme right-wing terrorism.

Routine Arrest Uncovers Terror Investigation

The investigation began when officers arrested the boy at a south London address on suspicion of criminal damage to a vehicle.

During searches, police said they discovered "a number of documents of concern", leading counter-terrorism officers to become involved. The teenager was subsequently charged over an alleged plan to target two mosques in the Sutton area and has been remanded into custody.

Communities Reassured as Patrols Increase

Police said both mosques have been informed and are receiving support from specialist officers, while extra patrols have been deployed across the area to provide reassurance.

The Met stressed there is no evidence of a wider or continuing threat, adding that detectives are not seeking anyone else in connection with the investigation.

Warning Over Rising Youth Extremism

Detective Chief Superintendent Nick Blackburn acknowledged the case would cause understandable concern within the local Muslim community, warning against underestimating the cumulative impact of such incidents.

Commander Helen Flanagan, head of Counter Terrorism Policing London, described the allegations as "very serious" and said investigators are dealing with an increasing number of children and young people becoming involved in extremist ideologies.

Court Appearance Set

The teenager has also been charged with racially aggravated criminal damage after allegedly damaging a vehicle in Sutton on or before 20 June.

He is due to appear before Westminster Magistrates' Court on Thursday, 16 July. Police are urging parents, teachers and carers to report concerns about potential radicalisation at an early stage, saying timely intervention can help prevent vulnerable young people from becoming involved in extremist activity.

Boy, 14, charged with terror offence over 'plan to target mosques'

That’s two minors involved in terrorism in today’s news.

Time to start holding patents responsible for the actions of their children.

9 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

That’s two minors involved in terrorism in today’s news.

Time to start holding patents responsible for the actions of their children.

Parents can't control the minds of 14yos.

2 hours ago, Rockyroad said:

Parents can't control the minds of 14yos.

A parent I know who is the IT manager for a school district has set up desks and computers for his children in the family living room, his kids don’t get to use computers unless in direct sight of their parents and they don’t have smart phones.

He explains his decision in the basis of allowing a child to have computers/smart phones in their bedroom is to leave them open to online abuse and manipulation.

I doubt his kids will ever be arrested for online crimes.

4 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

That’s two minors involved in terrorism in today’s news.

Time to start holding patents responsible for the actions of their children.

Children that aren't taught respect for life, especially by their primary role model, their fathers, will look elsewhere for someone to pay them attention, with lies, promises of power and money, manipulated.

Terrorists also learn from parents who are terrorists.

Those primary role models ingrain their children from birth how to look at the world, how to treat others, including animals, how to relate to the opposite sex, and are either taught selfishness or how to negotiate. What a child learns as a youngster sends them into the world with either respect for life, or how to abuse everything for gains.

Listening to your children when they ask questions about what they hear and see, and how others are treating them, gives them positive answers of how to relate to others that try to manipulate or hurt them by bullying.

Ignoring them and giving them media tools, and allowing free rein on them lets them find out about life from others who don't care about them,can give them bad ideas, and those ideas can lead to this type of behavior.

Edited July 16Jul 16 by fredwiggy

7 hours ago, bannork said:

The Metropolitan Police said the case is linked to alleged extreme right-wing terrorism.

They're always very quick to announce the political motive when they think it is linked to the right.

Unlike the Anne Widdicombe case where they assured everyone it was not politically motivated.

2 Tier policing is alive and well in the UK.

1 hour ago, JonnyF said:

They're always very quick to announce the political motive when they think it is linked to the right.

Unlike the Anne Widdicombe case where they assured everyone it was not politically motivated.

2 Tier policing is alive and well in the UK.

Almost as quick as you are to deflect, obfuscate or otherwise defend rightwing extremism.

13 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Almost as quick as you are to deflect, obfuscate or otherwise defend rightwing extremism.

Stop lieing Higgot.

I have never defended right wing extremism.

Quote me or retract, liar.

9 minutes ago, JonnyF said:

Stop lieing Higgot.

I have never defended right wing extremism.

Quote me or retract, liar.

Yes you have Jonny, you never stop bleating your defense a self confessed rightwing hate monger, characterizing the crime she confessed to as ‘hurty words’.

16 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Yes you have Jonny, you never stop bleating your defense a self confessed rightwing hate monger, characterizing the crime she confessed to as ‘hurty words’.

Crime& Justice

You are trying to categorize Lucy Connolly as a far-right extremist? 😄

A mother and child carer coerced into pleading guilty for a crime she did not commit.

Dear oh Dear Higgot, have a day off...😄

2 hours ago, JonnyF said:

You are trying to categorize Lucy Connolly as a far-right extremist? 😄

A mother and child carer coerced into pleading guilty for a crime she did not commit.

Dear oh Dear Higgot, have a day off...😄

What did Lucy Connolly do?

She referred online to the Southport suspect as a Muslim.-Wrong. He was raised as a Christian and had substantial anti-Muslim literature in his possession when arrested.

She said he was an illegal immigrant- wrong. He was born in the UK.

Then she -

called for "mass deportation now" and urged her followers on X to "set fire" to hotels housing asylum seekers.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5yl7p4l11po

Talk about getting things wrong and stirring up violence and racial hatred.

Finally she was sentenced to a 31-month prison sentence but released after serving 40% of her term in prison.

So she was back on the streets after 12.4 months in the slammer. Not bad having called for arson.

3 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Yes you have Jonny, you never stop bleating your defense a self confessed rightwing hate monger, characterizing the crime she confessed to as ‘hurty words’.

Hurty words should count for nothing. If your skin is so thin that a few words get you upset then you need help, serious help.

5 minutes ago, Photoguy21 said:

Hurty words should count for nothing. If your skin is so thin that a few words get you upset then you need help, serious help.

You mean telling people to set fire to migrants' hostels?

You might want to check what she actually said in the hurty social media post.

3 minutes ago, bannork said:

You mean telling people to set fire to migrants' hostels?

That is not hurty words, thee is the implication of a violent threat in those words. What she said was not inciting anything and certainly not violence. She implied she had no interest in them.

3 minutes ago, johng said:

You might want to check what she actually said in the hurty social media post.

In her now deleted X post from 29 July, she called for mass deportation and to set fire to hotels housing immigrants.  She added: “If that makes me racist, so be it.”

UPDATED WITH SENTENCE: Childminder admits inciting racial hatred over social media post | The Crown Prosecution Service

5 minutes ago, bannork said:

You mean telling people to set fire to migrants' hostels?

She didn't say that. That is your mind coming to that idea, she never said anything about executing criminal activity. She said she was not interested in anything that takes place as related to the location.

8 minutes ago, Photoguy21 said:

She didn't say that. That is your mind coming to that idea, she never said anything about executing criminal activity. She said she was not interested in anything that takes place as related to the location.

What she posted-

Hours after the Southport attack, acting on false online disinformation claiming the attacker was a Muslim asylum seeker, Connolly posted:

"Mass deportation now, set fire to all the f**** hotels full of the bastards for all I care… if that makes me racist so be it."** [1]

She later added to the post, stating: "while you're at it take the treacherous government and politicians with them."

what did lucy connolly say - Google Search

5 minutes ago, bannork said:

What she posted-

Hours after the Southport attack, acting on false online disinformation claiming the attacker was a Muslim asylum seeker, Connolly posted:

She later added to the post, stating: "while you're at it take the treacherous government and politicians with them."

what did lucy connolly say - Google Search

That is not violence she was expressing her lack of interest in what happens to them. She got 30 months for that yet some acts of *ape get a slap on the wrist. Tell me, where is the justice?

7 minutes ago, bannork said:

What she posted-

Hours after the Southport attack, acting on false online disinformation claiming the attacker was a Muslim asylum seeker, Connolly posted:

She later added to the post, stating: "while you're at it take the treacherous government and politicians with them."

what did lucy connolly say - Google Search

Her punishment was well-deserved.

3 minutes ago, Photoguy21 said:

That is not violence she was expressing her lack of interest in what happens to them. She got 30 months for that yet some acts of *ape get a slap on the wrist. Tell me, where is the justice?

She told people to set fire to migrants' hostels!

She said she didn't care if the hotels were set on fire..the treacherous politicians and government are exactly as she describes.

17 minutes ago, johng said:

She said she didn't care if the hotels were set on fire..the treacherous politicians and government are exactly as she describes.

Quote

"Mass deportation now, set fire to all the f**** hotels full of the bastards for all I care… if that makes me racist so be it."**

4 hours ago, JonnyF said:

You are trying to categorize Lucy Connolly as a far-right extremist? 😄

A mother and child carer coerced into pleading guilty for a crime she did not commit.

Dear oh Dear Higgot, have a day off...😄

Yes she’s a far right extremist and she was convicted for crimes she confessed to, refer her rightwing extremism posted above.

4 hours ago, JonnyF said:

Stop lieing Higgot.

I have never defended right wing extremism.

Quote me or retract, liar.

You just did it again.

You’re banged to rights Jonny.

2 hours ago, bannork said:

She told people to set fire to migrants' hostels!

No she didn't. She said she didn't care what happened

1 minute ago, Photoguy21 said:

No she didn't. She said she didn't care what happened

Quote

"Mass deportation now, set fire to all the f**** hotels full of the bastards for all I care… if that makes me racist so be it."**

17 hours ago, bannork said:

Quote

"Mass deportation now, set fire to all the f**** hotels full of the bastards for all I care… if that makes me racist so be it."**

That is not telling people to do it. It is frustration. Maybe you cant tell the difference but you need to.

On 7/16/2026 at 5:47 AM, Chomper Higgot said:

Almost as quick as you are to deflect, obfuscate or otherwise defend rightwing extremism.

As the most prominent member to berate any common sense poster stating the obvious - that police comments on Widdecombe murder were BS, I thought you might have wound your neck in for a period of introspection?

21 hours ago, bannork said:

Then she -

called for "mass deportation now" and urged her followers on X to "set fire" to hotels housing asylum seekers.

There is nothing illegal about calling for mass deportations. It's a legitimate position. Just because you do not like it does not make it illegal.

Also, she didn't urge anyone to set fire to anything. She said set fire to them "for all I care". If I say to you "Go to Australia on holiday for all I care" am I "urging" you to go there? No, I am saying I don't care if you go or not.

She was coerced into a confession. Bullied under threat of being separated from her autistic daughter. Promised a light sentence. Then when she caved she got 31 months. Absolutely disgusting, as is anyone who celebrates this dark day for British "justice".

19 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Yes she’s a far right extremist and she was convicted for crimes she confessed to, refer her rightwing extremism posted above.

Crime& Justice

You just did it again.

You’re banged to rights Jonny.

No. I didn't, Higgot.

1. Lucy Connolly is not a far right extremist. Labeling her as such causes the term to lose it's gravity and effectiveness.

2. I never defended her. In fact, I thought her tweet was really mean. If I was a migrant it might have hurt my feelings. I just said it didn't warrant a 31 month jail sentence and it doesn't make her a far right extremist. She should have pled not guilty and she would have walked like Ricky Jones. Having been coerced into pleading guilty by a 2 tier justice system, a small fine would have been appropriate.

So please stop lieing. It doesn't impress anyone.