A Scottish mother and daughter are facing prison after waging a campaign of neo-nazi propaganda, racist abuse and conspiracy theories online.
Shirley Craughwell, 51, and her daughter Hannah – who adopted the chilling online persona “Hannah Hitler” – posted hundreds of extremist comments, images and videos across social media platforms, prompting a police investigation and court action.
Racist and antisemitic
The court in Edinburgh heard that police received intelligence in May 2024 that the women were posting “racist, anti-Semitic and threatening” material online. Officers raided their homes the following month.
They discovered that Shirley Craughwell maintained a Telegram account where she had posted thousands of extremist comments while engaging with other far-right users. The prosecution said she used Nazi salute emojis and the code “88” (online code for “Heil Hitler”).
Hannah Craughwell used a Facebook account in the name of Goyim AH to distribute vile antisemitic and racist material. On the account, she was listed as the only friend and every post was tagged to her alone.
She also used the Facebook account to circulate material supporting the Highland Division a breakaway from Patriotic Alternative, and repost material from PA’s James Costello, who has just been released from prison after serving a sentence for inciting racial hatred.
Craughwell’s online comments included her declaring she was “a proud racist” and posting statements such as “We must unite as a race,” “the borders are flooded by n******,” and “the police are run by Judean.”
Hannah Craughwell was also found to have an account on the US extremist chat site Gab, where she used the moniker “Hannah Hitler.”
She regularly shared extreme right-wing content, including one message stating: “I am disappointed Hitler never killed six million even though there weren’t that many Jews at that time.”
Hannah distributed flyers in her local area publicising the Neo-Nazi propaganda film “Europa – The Last Battle”.
They denied the Holocaust, glorified Adolf Hitler, and repeatedly used racial slurs such as “n**” and “p”.
Antisemitic conspiracy theories
Their posts linked Israel to global conspiracies, including the 9/11 terror attacks and the Covid pandemic, echoing long‑standing antisemitic tropes.
Shirley Craughwell described non‑white people as “a different species” and declared “Hitler was trying to save us.” In one of her most disturbing statements, she wrote: “The need for a new holocaust is never more urgent than now”.
Both mother and daughter issued death threats and threats of violence against particular individuals.
Guilty pleas
Shirley Craughwell pleaded guilty to sending racist, antisemitic, threatening and abusive messages, voice notes, images and videos between December 2021 and April 2024.
She also admitted to posting racially provocative leaflets in public places intended to stir up hatred against groups defined by race, colour or nationality between April and June 2024.
Racially provocative
Hannah Craughwell pleaded guilty to posting racist, anti-Semitic and transphobic images and comments between November 2022 and March 2024. She also admitted to distributing racially provocative flyers in Edinburgh in March 2023.
They will be back in court for sentencing next month.
