'School Attack Plotter' Faces Retrial

The jury in the trial of a teenager accused of planning a Columbine-style school massacre has been discharged after failing to reach a verdict on his terrorism charges.

The 17-year-old boy, who cannot be named because of his age, was accused of stockpiling weapons for an assault on his former school in Loughborough, Leicestershire, as well as naming a sixth-form college, a local mosque, cinema and council offices as potential targets.

He will now face a retrial.

The Old Bailey trial heard that the youth allegedly wrote his plans for The New Columbine in a Che Guevara notebook emblazoned with Nazi swastikas.

Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold murdered 12 students and one teacher at Columbine High School in Colorado in 1999 before killing themselves in one of America's worst mass shootings.

The teenager, who has been diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome since his arrest in February, denied a charge of possessing items for the purpose, preparation and instigation of an act of terrorism.

He claimed he had not intended to hurt anyone and his notebook contained "jottings, not actual plans", the trial heard.

The boy also denied one count of possessing a document or record – the Mujahideen Poisons Handbook - which contained information likely to be useful for a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism.

Recorder of London Judge Brian Barker QC discharged the jury of six men and six women on Wednesday after they failed to reach verdict on both counts following six days of deliberations.

A hearing will take place at the Old Bailey on December 12 to set a date for a retrial.

During the six-week trial, the boy pleaded guilty to one count of possessing explosives in the form of component parts of improvised explosive devices.

He and two other 17-year-old boys have also pleaded guilty to two charges of possessing petrol bombs and component parts of pipe bombs for the use of explosive devices.