Man jailed for sending antisemitic threats to Jewish MP
Leeds Central and Headingley MP Alex Sobel said 'kill Jews' messages 'left him fearing for the safety of himself and his family'
A man has been jailed after sending hundreds of abusive and antisemitic messages to the constituency office of a prominent Jewish MP.
Kevin Smith, 61, looked confused and said “I don’t believe this”, as he was led to the cells from Leeds Magistrates’ Court on Thursday after pleading guilty to religiously aggravated harassment.
District Judge David Kitson outlined how Smith sent voice messages and 300 text messages to the constituency office of Leeds Central and Headingley MP Alex Sobel between March 6 and March 15 2024.
The judge said the voice messages were “just generally unpleasant and offensive”, but many of the text messages included phrases like “kill the Jews” and “kill all the Jews, they should be arrested for war crimes”.
Smith was jailed for eight weeks by the district judge who said he had shown no remorse.
Prosecutors from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) argued that Smith’s actions were a deliberate attempt to cause harm and distress.
In a statement to police, Sobel described the correspondence as “deeply disturbing” and said it had ‘
Working alongside West Yorkshire Police, CPS investigators examined the messages on Smith’s phone, confirming that Mr Sobel was a saved contact—contradicting Smith’s claim that he did not know who he was messaging.
Smith admitted to the offence at a previous hearing on 11 November 2025. He was handed an eight-week custodial sentence and a five-year restraining order.
The order prohibits Smith from contacting Sobel except in relation to genuine constituency business, and from coming within 50 metres of Mr Sobel’s constituency office.
Claire MacDonald, Senior Crown Prosecutor for CPS Yorkshire & Humberside, said: “The right to freedom of expression does not extend to sending grossly offensive and menacing messages.
“Criminal offences committed against MPs imperil both the democratic process and our public service, and the antisemitic abuse subjected to Mr Sobel and his staff was simply unacceptable. Parliamentarians, like everyone else, should never have to work or live in fear, and the CPS will not hesitate to prosecute offenders who seek to harm and intimidate them.”
Dave Rich, Director of Policy at the Community Security Trust, welcomed the conviction, saying: “Smith’s actions were intended to cause distress to Mr Sobel and his family, and such behaviour should have no place in our society.
“The right to hold politicians to account can never justify racist abuse of this nature. If anything, this kind of behaviour undermines our democratic system, and we thank the CPS and police for their work in securing this conviction.”
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