Satanist actor who claimed to make 'pact with devil' kept 'killer's manifestos' on phone

An actor who claimed he made a deal with a ‘red-horned devil’ has been jailed 23 months for having extreme right-wing material.

Declan George Candiani, a self-proclaimed satanist, aged 26, was stopped by counter terror police at Stansted Airport in August last year.

The former Brit School of Performing Arts student was going on holiday to Finland with his girlfriend.

He was stopped under terror cops ‘schedule 7’ powers, when officers do not need to have a "reasonable suspicion" of a person's involvement in terrorism to search someone..

Officers arrested Candiani after looking at his phone contents. His home, he shared with his mother in Streatham, south-west London, was then searched.

An examination of Candiani's iPad and phone revealed extreme right-wing material which included "manifestos" of mass killers.

He also had documents advocating the use of serious violence to achieve white supremacy.

In police interview, George-Candiani claimed he had a “possessed mindset” and said he had made a “pact with the devil” to be a “minion”.

Jailing him for 23 months on Friday, Nigel Lickley KC said: "Examination of your devices revealed that from at least February 2024 you had accessed material because you adopted an extreme far-right mindset.

"You tattooed your body with Adolf Hitler symbols and began watching programmes about massacres and mass shootings.

"You downloaded a DIY instruction guide for making a sheet metal firearm on 14 April 2024."

In an interview with police, he claimed he had downloaded the material after becoming interested in the Satanist group "Order of Nine Angles", which has been linked with right-wing extremism.

Candiani from Streatham was assessed by psychiatrists who found he had a "mild personality disorder" and was fit to stand trial.

Experts agreed the symptoms he described were not psychosis but a manifestation of his own personality.

Giving evidence in court, he described being visited by the devil in his bedroom, who was "a big red man with horns".

Jurors were told that Candiani's mental health suffered after his mother was diagnosed with cancer.

Sentencing Candiani, Judge Nigel Lickley KC said he had read a letter that Candiani had written to him saying that he would not "go down these routes again".

He also noted that his mother was terminally ill and receiving palliative care.

Candiani also started using encrypted messaging platform Telegram under the username Ian Stuart 88, referencing the founder of a neo-Nazi group.

That group has been financially sanctioned by the British government for suspected involvement in terrorist activities.

Candiani denied wrongdoing, claiming he was mainly interested in satanism and the occult.

Judge Lickley said Candiani wrote him a letter explaining he has "rejected satanism and far-right ideologies" and is now a pagan who believes in Norse gods.

"I have read your letter to me, I note you want to take more steps to make sure you do not go down the path you did in 2024 again - you have said you have benefitted from counselling", the judge said.

He was found guilty in October of two charges of collection of information likely to be useful for terrorism and acquitted of two similar offences.

Candiani was sentenced to 23 months' imprisonment plus a year on licence for one charge, and to 10 months' imprisonment with a year on licence for the second. They are to be served concurrently.

During the trial, jurors had heard details of the "horrific" material Candiani had on his devices.

In Hater's Handbook, the leader of the satanic neo-Nazi group Maniac Murder Cult claimed to have "murdered for the white race" and promoted the likes of mass killer Anders Breivik.

A document entitled 21 Silent Techniques of Killing outlined close contact "assassination" with a spike, knife and nunchucks.

The court heard his mental health suffered and he went down a "rabbit hole" after his mother was diagnosed with cancer, the court was told.

The defendant said: "At that time I was dealing a lot with my mum and just hated the world and I was very angry and upset and hated everything and everyone."

Candiani accepted that he had a tattoo on his chest bearing a neo-Nazi symbol 88 - meaning Heil Hitler.

He also admitted applying to join a right-wing extremist group, Active Club England, but said he later got "cold feet".

However, Candiani told jurors he was not interested in terror attacks or hurting anyone.

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Candiani has described himself as having no friends, being introverted and struggling with communication but once worked as a duty manager at a theatre in Clapham, south-west London.

The judge told Candiani: "Your offending in 2024 is of a type where it is right to be concerned about you and the future.

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"You were deeply immersed in truly horrifying belief systems and associated material."

Commander Dominic Murphy, head of Counter Terrorism Policing London, said: “This is another example of why ‘schedule 7’ powers at our ports and borders are so important in helping us to identify potential terrorist activity.

“In this case, analysis of digital devices revealed downloads of horrific material promoted by extreme right-wing terrorist groups, as well as extremely dangerous material about carrying out attacks and other acts of extreme violence."