A member of MI5, who leads counterterrorism teams, has told an inquest how the security service continued to investigate Rhianan Rudd until her suicide in a care home, aged 16.
The man, referred to in court as ‘Witness A’, appeared behind a blue curtain and could not be seen by anyone in the courtroom as he addressed the inquest today.
He said it was necessary to investigate the teenager “to assess the risk she posed to national security”.
He told the court MI5’s caseloads involved a growing number of minors who have been radicalised online, and discussed the complexities of trying to assess the difference between online “bravado” and someone taking “concrete steps” towards committing a terrorist attack.
Rhianan, from Bolsover in the East Midlands, was an autistic teenager who had been groomed and sexually exploited online by a white supremacist in America.
She became obsessed with Hitler, told her mum she wanted to blow up a synagogue, and had downloaded information on bomb making.
Her mother referred her to deradicalisation programme Prevent in September 2020, but anti-terrorism police later arrested and charged Rhianan with terrorism offences, and she was put into care.
The police investigation was dropped after Rhianan was assessed by the Home Office as a victim of modern slavery.
Five months later, in May 2022, the 16-year-old took her own life at Bluebell House Residential Home in Nottinghamshire. She was found with a ligature around her neck.
Her mother, Emily Carter, believes the pressure of the investigation had taken its toll.
An inquest at Chesterfield Town Hall has been examining how police and social services balanced the challenges of a young girl who was both a potential danger to herself and the public.
The coroner and legal teams today came to London to hear evidence from MI5.
Witness A, who had worked at MI5 for 35 years, said it was known from the outset that Rhianan had self-harmed and was vulnerable.
But he added: “She appeared to have a violent right-wing extremist mindset, she showed some intent as a result of being radicalised online.
“Investigating her was the only way of understanding the threat she might pose to national security.”
Rhianan had to come off the Prevent programme while under investigation, and Witness A talked of Joint Operation Team (JOT) meetings between MI5 and Anti-Terrorism Police discussing the balance between safeguarding and investigating her.
In an email, an MI5 investigating officer said they would be “grateful for national guidance for handling such a case”.
MI5 seeing ‘growing rise’ of casework on children
Witness A said the service was “seeing a growth of minors in our casework” and that there had been “a period of significant change to the sort of work we were seeing”.
He told the court: “None of us joined MI5 to investigate children. It does not sit comfortably with any of us. It’s becoming a necessary requirement.”
Charging Rhianan helped with safeguarding, he argued, as her bail conditions restricted her access to the internet. After police charges were dropped, she remained a concern to the security services.
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The inquest heard that during a meeting in April 2022, the month before Rhianan’s death, police updated MI5 and said she had recently started speaking with a German accent and dressed in camouflage on Adolf Hitler’s birthday.
An officer in a MI5 department known as the behavioural science unit (BSU) reported that “Rhianan is an individual who is both vulnerable and risky at the same time”.
“Rhianan maybe in a situation where her vulnerabilities are exploited by an individual and she therefore becomes an increased risk,” they added.
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In her case, the individual was a neo-Nazi called Chris Cook. The inquest heard how MI5 contacted the FBI in December 2020, which later provided all known communication between Rhianan and Cook.
MI5 was told he had a “personal relationship” with Rhianan, then aged 14, and communicated with her on WhatsApp, including sending links to “racially motivated, violent extremist books.”
Witness A said the internet had “lowered the barriers of engagement” allowing vulnerable people like Rhianan to meet with radical individuals.
The inquest continues.
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email [email protected] in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK
