Glasgow bigot jailed for sickening anti-Catholic abuse on Neil Lennon hate website

Oct 18 2011 By Emma Smith

A BIGOT who posted vile sectarian rants on Facebook has been jailed for eight months.

Stephen Birrell, 28, from Dalmarnock, pled guilty to posting the abuse on a social networking site between February and March this year.

Birrell's postings made derogatory references to Celtic manager Neil Lennon and also included remarks about Catholicism.

On March 1, Birrell went to a page called Neil Lennon Should Be Banned and wrote: "Hope they all die. Simple. Catholic scumbags ha ha."

Birrell, who has a Catholic mother, then went back on the site three days later - hours after the heated Old Firm Scottish Cup replay at Celtic Park.

He wrote on the page: "Proud to hate Fenian tattie farmers. Simple ha ha."

A few days later he put more sectarian rants on the page.

His final post read: "Fenian b*****ds who have f*** all else to do than talk sh*t."

The bigot was snared by police after an investigation into internet hate speech in the aftermath of the explosive Celtic Park game. 

Lesley Thomson QC, the Solicitor General, said: "The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is absolutely determined to play its part in confronting the problems of sectarianism, religious offences and related disorder and violence.

"Whether the offences are at the football match itself, travelling to or from it, or as in this case online threatening communications, we will do all in our power to bring those who perpetrate such crimes to justice.

"Prosecutors will continue to prosecute anyone indulging in such behaviour which is completely unacceptable in modern Scotland."

He was jailed for eight months and issued with a five-year football banning order at Glasgow Sheriff Court on Monday.

Birrell was previously convicted of cutting his girlfriend, who was pregnant at the time, with a machete in 2007. He was jailed for 18 months for the attack.