Neo-Nazi 'high priest' who called for 'holy race war' to be released from prison early

The "high priest" of a racist church which called for a "holy race war" is due to be released from his prison sentence despite his own supporters saying he hasn't "compromised on his beliefs". James Costello was identified as the self-styled "high priest" of the Creativity Movement, which "unashamedly promoted white supremacy and neo-Nazi ideology" and boasted an army of "fanatics capable of very serious and deadly violence". The 40-year-old, formerly of Old Rough Lane in Kirkby , spread racist propaganda in the form of written materials and personally-narrated audiobooks which "called for the subjugation and elimination of non-white persons and the establishment of a white master race". Liverpool Crown Court heard in November 2023 that the material was "awful and frightening and intended to disturb and disrupt our society". Costello also has ties to far-right group Patriotic Alternative , which distributed hundreds of leaflets attacking migrants across Merseyside in the days before the Suites hotel Kirkby riots in 2023. Costello was sentenced to five years in prison in November 2023 after he was found guilty of 19 counts of stirring up racial hatred by publishing materials. But the ECHO understands Costello is due to be released from his sentence later this month after only serving 40% of his term. And worryingly his supporters have said Costello's beliefs are as extreme as they were before he was jailed. In a post on Telegram, Laura Towler, deputy leader of Patriotic Alternative, said: "James Costello is getting out of prison this month...He is still on licence for the remainder of his sentence so he will likely be excluded from any political activity, but know that he is resolute in his beliefs and despite the suppression and harassment he’s faced over the last two years, he didn’t compromise on his beliefs once." As part of an emergency early release government scheme to help ease overcrowding in prisons, some inmates can be freed after serving 40% of their fixed term sentence, rather than the usual 50%. It does not apply for sentences for serious violent offences, sex offences or terrorist offences. An HM Prison and Probation Service spokesperson told the ECHO : "Offenders released on licence are subject to strict conditions and we do not hesitate to send them back to prison if they break the rules." The ECHO understands if Costello displays any behaviour which suggests he poses an increased risk to the public he would face being returned to prison. Costello, who is a former soldier who fled the army after suffering a bad back, is expected to be released back into the community by the end of this month. He has spent his sentence at HMP Liverpool , HMP Manchester and most recently at HMP Lancaster Farms. Much of the content Costello distributed in his "high priest" role was "dripping with hate", the court heard. Much of the content of these materials cannot be repeated due to its highly offensive nature. But the ECHO revealed that contained within the numerous documents spread by Costello were abhorrent references to Jewish people and people of colour. Police raided Costello's home in August 2021 after receiving numerous complaints when stickers "promoting" the group's activities were left in public places around Merseyside over the previous months. They seized flags and banners bearing its messages from his house after linking him to the website's IP address. The seized materials contained "imagery with strong Nazist and white supremacist overtones", all in the colours of red, white and black to "replicate Nazi imagery" . Costello meanwhile stated in his evidence from the witness box that he had been the "worldwide leader of the Creativity Movement" since at least 2017. Detectives also found a "ministerial certificate", ordaining him into a role with the aim of "spreading the word and recruiting persons to the church", within his property. He was referred to as both "Reverend Costello" and "Pontifex Maximus", or high priest, of the organisation - which was previously known as the World Church of the Creator and was founded in the USA in the 1970s. In June this year a Telegram channel under the name "Rev. James Costello" posted a link to the Creativity Movement website. However, the channel's name was changed on November 12 to "Free James Costello" and the bio said: "This page is not affiliated with James Costello, nor is he responsible for any of its content." A post on the same day, allegedly written by James Logsdon, an American-based member of the Creativity Movement, said the channel was his responsibility. The post said: "To the insufferable anti-white, Marxist media of the UK and anyone else this may concern. I, Rev James Logsdon of Illinois, USA, own and operate this page. "Rev James Costello has NO affiliation, control or access to post on this page. He hasn't since the day before his incarceration and has not been in contact with me since that day. He has sent no directives or messages through anyone else to do so otherwise. He has been in 100% compliance with the ridiculous stipulations imposed on him. To make any other claims, such as those that were made recently are undeniably false!" There is no suggestion that Costello has had any involvement in the page during his time in prison. But the channel still displays posts from 2023 showing a picture of Costello accompanied by messages which appear to be written by him in the first-person. This includes references to the Patriotic Alternative conference and a leafletting campaign in Dingle, neither of which Logsdon had any involvement in. It is currently not known if the Prison and Probation Service is looking into the Telegram activity when considering if Costello is suitable for release. Sentencing Costello in 2023 , the Honorary Recorder of Liverpool Judge Andrew Menary KC said: "The history of the Creativity Movement shows that its fanatics are capable of very serious and deadly violence. Hate crimes like this have a tendency to undermine communities and societies - making people feel like they do not belong, making communities fearful and untrusting of others. "You say that, as a result of these proceedings, you realise that the material on the website was abusive and might cause hurt, something you did not intend and something you regret. Frankly, I doubt that very much. The highly racist and anti-Semitic nature of the material you wanted the world to see and embrace was blindingly obvious."