Janice R. Andrews
Sam Melia, 33, the purported leader of the far-right network Hundred-Handers, located in Pudsey, Leeds, is charged with public order offences in connection with a troubling campaign that incites racial hatred, according to a startling disclosure made at Leeds Crown Court today.
Melia is charged with creating and manufacturing racist stickers between 2019 and 2021, which he allegedly distributed in public areas of his neighbourhood. He allegedly urged thousands of his internet followers to mimic these acts, according to testimony given in court. Among the provocative phrases on the stickers were “Reject white guilt,” “Nationalism is nurture,” “We will be a minority in our homeland by 2066,” and “Diversity – designed to fail, built to replace.”
Prosecutor Tom Storey called Melia “media savvy,” saying she tried to give his activities a look of legality. On Melia’s computer, however, the authorities found explicitly racist remarks, such as “There is a war on Whites” and “Mass immigration is white genocide.”
The court was also informed that Melia’s residence had an Oswald Mosley book, Third Reich posters, and an image of Adolf Hitler. Melia allegedly used racial slurs against Black, Asian, and Jewish persons on Telegram, where Hundred-Handers had gathered 3,500 followers.
The Hundred-Handers group, named after mythical monsters with 100 arms, functioned anonymously to protect the names of its members, as the investigation disclosed. The group operated not only in the United Kingdom but also in other countries.
The stickers, which were discovered on Melia’s computer, had national catchphrases in both Italian and Spanish, indicating the organization’s international presence.
The legal procedures illuminated Melia’s purported deliberate attempts to disseminate racist propaganda in relation to particular events, like a March Against Racism and a Black Lives Matter march. These acts were, according to the prosecution, “ultimately driven by a racist motivation.”
Authorities are now investigating the trial in an effort to determine Melia’s true impact and the global impact of the Hundred-Handers group on communities.
