Coronavirus: YouTuber jailed for bomb threat to Birmingham hospital in first week of lockdown
Matthew Wain said he would "bomb the place" and that he thought NHS staff deserved to die of coronavirus.
Thursday 18 June 2020 17:11, UK
A YouTuber has been jailed for 12 weeks after making a bomb threat in the first week of lockdown to an NHS trust dealing with coronavirus patients.
Matthew Wain, 31, posted video of himself phoning in the threat about Birmingham City Hospital, in which he told an emergency worker he would "bomb the place, to be honest" in anger at a supposed lack of treatment.
Speaking about NHS staff, he added: "After the way they spoke to me, I hope they all die of the coronavirus because they would deserve it."
The footage, which racked up 81,000 views and included the entire 10-minute phone call, showed him introducing himself as a YouTuber, before proceeding to say a racist comment, make allegations against the staff, and then ask to speak to the nurse in charge.
He is said to have described previously going to hospital while "having a heart attack".
Wain was arrested on 1 April over the footage, but said he "didn't mean it" and didn't want to hurt anyone.
He pleaded guilty last week to posting the video on 29 March, but sat in the dock at Birmingham Magistrates Court on Thursday and laughed as the video was played back.
Passing judgement, District Judge Briony Clarke made note of the laughter from the dock, saying the rest of the court had been "horrified" by the video's contents.
She said the comment related to COVID-19 was "truly despicable" and warned the 31-year-old he was fortunate he wasn't facing charges of something "more serious".
She said of the video: "You start by abusing another YouTube user. You then decided to call the hospital and, when the rest of the country were weekly clapping for the NHS and carers, you abused them and made threats."
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The unemployed former drug user, of Hatfield Road, Birmingham, had previously been given a community order for a malicious communications offence involving gay bars in Norfolk in 2017.
District Judge Clarke commented on the "almost identical nature" of the offence as she told Wain the matter was "so serious that only immediate custody is warranted".
Wain asked if he would be placed in a protection wing in prison before he was led away from the dock by two masked officers.
He has also been ordered to pay costs of £135 and £122 surcharge within three months of him being released. His parents are said to be disgusted at his actions, and he no longer has a presence on any social media platform.
More than 360 people at hospitals run by Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust have died since the beginning of the outbreak.