Nicholas Prosper, 19, has been sentenced to 49 years behind bars. The teen was sentenced for the triple murder of his own family members. He had attempted to carry out a school massacre plot in a bid to become an infamous school shooter. Prosper idolised American gunman Adam Lanza was planning to kill 34 people – one more than Lanza’s deadliest shooting.
Police were able to stop Prosper from reaching the school after a neighbour called the police that morning due to the noisy attack. Cops arrived at the family flat at 05:50 am where they found his little sister, brother and his mother slain. Police arrested him after he escaped to a wooded area, stopping him from carrying out his school massacre plot.
Nicholas Prosper: Teen sentenced for triple murder and school massacre plot
His “main wish”, however, was to “achieve lasting notoriety as a mass killer” … specifically to “imitate and even surpass other mass killers around the world”
“He had conducted in-depth internet research on shootings in the United States of America, Norway, Australia and New Zealand,”
“He understood his plans, if realised, would bring about the greatest number of deaths in a school or other mass shooting in the United Kingdom and possibly even in the United States of America.”
Prosecutor Timothy Cray KC said
Stopped on massacre mission
Explainer – The headline is sensational and emotionally charged, though accurate. A neutral headline would avoid loaded and emotive language.
- Key Takeaway – He was less than a mile away from St Joseph’s Catholic primary school.
The Metro reports that Nicholas Prosper was arrested by chance as he set off to commit the worst mass murder the country would have ever seen. He was arrested just one hour before he planned to burst in and slaughter 30 four and five-year-olds and their teachers.
Evil family killer forced to hear his fate
Explainer – The headline contains bias through its emotive language. Describing the individual as “evil” is a subjective moral judgment rather than a factual description.
- Key Takeaway – Prosper had a “disturbing fixation with violence and obsessive brutality”, and wanted to cower in his cell during the sentencing hearing at Luton Crown Court.
The Daily Express says the “evil” killer was “forced to hear his fate” after the judge ordered him to stop “cowering in his cell.” The paper praises the judge’s decision saying her declaration led to renewed pressure to force every convicted killer into the dock to face “the devastation they have caused.”
Gun sellers will have to alert police before handing over firearms
Explainer – The headline is relatively neutral and factual. It simply states a policy change without using emotive or loaded language. There’s no clear bias, as the wording doesn’t frame the policy positively or negatively.
- Key Takeaway – Triple killer who plotted a school massacre was arrested with illegally purchased shotgun
The Daily Telegraph says gun laws in Britain will change in the wake of the case, compelling sellers of firearms to inform police before they hand over weapons to buyers. The paper reports that Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has said Prosper’s case exposed “deep and long-standing weaknesses” in private arms sales.