Man, 24, discussed buying materials from Tesco to make firearms, court hears

A 24-year-old man talked online about making firearms with 3D printers and buying materials for them from Tesco, a court has heard.

Gabriel Budasz, born in Poland, is on trial at Winchester Crown Court accused of posting bomb-making tutorials online and encouraging terrorism.

Prosecutor Maryam Syed KC said Budasz was found by police as someone who used a number of social media sites under different usernames to post extreme right-wing material, such as on Telegram, Omegle and Odysee, and expressed “extreme racist views against black and Jewish people and encouraged others to direct action against them”.

Opening the case, Miss Syed said: “This defendant has a particular MO – modus operandi – of posting videos in which he advocated we say, violence, and extreme Nazi and right-wing views, extreme views, which we say demonstrate a clear and continued pattern of encouraging terrorism, whilst being in possession of information which would facilitate the same.”

One video shared on a Telegram channel was sent as an attachment to a message saying he thought it would be “very educational for everyone here” so they do not accidentally make a bomb.

“Let me be absolutely clear, we say that’s been typed on purpose, we say it’s not a joke,” Miss Syed said.

“It’s a bomb-making tutorial, and that’s what he has chosen to share.”

Police officers discovered the explosive-making video on his internal computer storage when Budasz was arrested at his supporting living accommodation in Weston-super-Mare on August 1 last year.

He asked, while handcuffed, to turn off his computer with his leg, which was refused.

The prosecution added it appeared he had been using his computer moments before the police entered his home that morning, and he refused to give officers passwords for his devices.

Miss Syed added: “It was clear that the defendant had been talking online on Discord (another instant messaging and social app) about making firearms with 3D printers and obtaining parts for this purpose, including from going to Tesco.

“This chat has been retrieved by police and they could see Telegram and Discord channels were open on the device and these were accessed by police.”

The court heard Budasz previously pleaded guilty to five terror offences of possessing information at the Old Bailey in London on December 22 2023.

He denies counts of dissemination of terrorist publications and encouraging terrorism, and sending electronic communication with intent to cause distress or anxiety.

The trial continues.