Man jailed for five years after homemade bombs found at Bristol home

A man who had expressed extreme rightwing views has been jailed for five years after police found an arsenal of weapons including homemade bombs at his suburban home.

Among the 23 improvised devices found at Matthew Glynn’s home in Bristol was a homemade grenade created from a tennis ball packed with explosive powder.

Glynn, 37, who worked in a joinery, also had a dartboard featuring images of people he hated, ranging from Barack Obama to the Duchess of Cambridge, the pop singer Cheryl and a Somali boy.

Police found more than 6kg of explosive powders and other chemicals that could be used in bomb-making, leading to neighbours being evacuated and the street being sealed off in July. There were also axes, knives and samurai swords in his arsenal as well as a “Wolverine-style” weapon with four sharp blades, described as “horrific” by police.

His social media posts suggested he held extreme rightwing views. However, when asked in interview about his ideologies, he told officers while he previously held “disgusting” views, these had since changed.

Police were tipped off about Glynn after a colleague, James Grogan, visited his home in Filton Avenue, north Bristol.

Rachel Drake, prosecuting, said: “He saw a vast array of weapons. The following day at work, Mr Glynn joked that he had had him sat on a bomb when he had been sat on the bed.” The colleague reported the claim to police. Grogan described Glynn as being an anxious man who demonstrated “racist and homophobic views”.

The explosive ordnance disposal unit was called in to help make Glynn’s property safe and a specialist army search team took part in the search alongside police officers.

“It was an extremely large arsenal,” Drake said. “In interview, he said it was his intention at some point to go to an open space to ignite [the bombs] to see what damage they could do.”

She said he did not have an explanation for the dartboard of people he hated and he denied he still held views expressed on Facebook. Drake said: “The Facebook pages demonstrate an element of Islamophobia and general racial hated.”

Sentencing Glynn, Judge Peter Blair QC, the Recorder of Bristol, described his Facebook postings as “haphazard and irregular” and added: “The really concerning elements of this case were the two bombs which were seized,” the judge said.

Ramin Pakrooh, representing Glynn, questioned why his client’s Facebook postings had been raised in court. “There’s a number of views expressed within his Facebook page such as views on immigration,” Pakrooh said.

“That is absolutely a matter for him and is absolutely not for this court to censure these views unless these views have resulted in him breaking the law.”

Pakrooh said the dartboard was for people he hated. “I don’t think any of the images on that board have escaped having darts thrown at them,” he said.

Glynn had been collecting weapons for about 20 years as a hobby, his barrister said.

Glynn, who had no previous convictions, admitted five charges under the Explosive Substances Act 1883. The Crown Prosecution (CPS) said he could not be charged with terrorism offences.

The senior investigating officer, DI Dave Lewis, said: “The CPS were consulted throughout and when presented with the evidence we gathered, referred the charging decision to the attorney general.

“Whatever Glyn’s motives were at the time he built the bomb only he truly knows. What is clear is that he once held distasteful and unacceptable views and continued to have a fascination with explosives and other weapons.”