Woman sentenced for posting 'disgusting' videos on social media

A woman who posted "disgusting and nauseating" comments on social media has been handed a suspended prison sentence. Fiona Ryan, 40, of Laverstock Road, Salisbury, appeared at Salisbury Magistrates Court after uploading offensive content.

Ryan was given a 12-week custodial sentence and was suspended for 18 months. In addition to the suspended sentence, she was also given an eight-week prison term.

Representing herself in court, Ryan apologised for any offence caused, but denied that the posts, which were shown in court, were anti-Semitic. She was ordered to pay a £154 victim surcharge and £650 in court costs.

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Ryan had previously been found guilty of four charges under the Communications Act 2003. She also pleaded guilty to two charges of posting grossly offensive content on the social media platform, X, formerly known as Twitter.

In his sentencing remarks, District Judge Timothy Pattinson said: "Any reasonable person would find your comments disgusting and nauseating. I find they were motivated by a desire to shock, by self-publicity and money."

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said Ryan regularly posted videos to TikTok and X where she comparing Israeli citizens to Nazis and made jokes about the Holocaust. She also directly compared Ashkenazi Jews with Nazis, and claimed Jewish doctors carried out sex change procedures on children.

Ryan reportedly described herself as "geo-political analyst" and a journalist in order to post hateful abuse and misinformation against the Jewish community.

Gavin Sumpter, a senior crown prosecutor with CPS Wessex, said: “Fiona Ryan sought to hide behind the right to freedom of speech, however the court found that her posts and videos were grossly offensive.

“Her vile rhetoric reached a wide audience has caused real harm in the Jewish community, the impact of which she was fully aware of.

“The CPS does not tolerate hate speech and will not hesitate to bring perpetrators to justice.”

She was found guilty after a trial of four offences contrary to section 127 (1)(a) of the Communications Act 2003. Ryan also pleaded guilty at another hearing on 1 November 2024 to a further two offences, relating to posts on the platform X.