LONDON (AP) — A British man who targeted schools and businesses with threatening letters in a six-week terror campaign in 2013 was sentenced Thursday to more than four years in prison and an additional five years over a sexual assault in 1988.
Woolwich Crown Court in east London heard that Gary Preston sent 42 envelopes containing white powder, which was later found to be talcum powder, and threatening messages that caused concern at the targeted venues. Some of the envelopes had small texts in Arabic on white paper, such as “Think fast, you have seconds Inshallah.”
Among the venues targeted in the fall of 2013 were the big Westfield shopping centers in east and west London, schools and colleges in Essex, which is east of the capital, and the Premier Inn hotel at London’s Stansted Airport.
Preston was arrested in September 2020 and pleaded guilty to 21 charges in August of last year.
Caitlin Clark mobbed by fans at introductory Indiana Fever press conference
Updates: MP Efeso Collins dies during charity run
'We found the bastard': Aotearoa's 10th meteorite discovered
'Time to go home' French farmers told following two weeks of protest
Man fleeing cops in western Michigan dies after unmarked cruiser hits him
Former PM Sir Bill English to head review of Kāinga Ora
EDITORIAL: Diet ethics panels failing to unravel the tangled LDP funding scandal
US launches more strikes against Houthis in Yemen
Hanna Cavinder announces RETURN to college basketball with Miami
Updates: MP Efeso Collins dies during charity run
A homeless man is reunited with his family after 13 years thanks to a Ford Mustang and a viral clip
Cyclone Gabrielle: Helicopter pilot recalls emotions, panic during rescue operation