Former Brit school student saw ‘red-horned devil’ in bedroom, court told

A former Brit school student has told jurors he was visited in his bedroom by a “red-horned devil” who demanded his “worship”.

Actor Declan George Candiani, 26, is on trial at the Old Bailey, accused of possessing a stash of extreme right-wing terrorist material.

It was uncovered on his iPhone and iPad after he was stopped by counter-terrorism police at Stansted airport as he attempted to go on holiday to Finland with his girlfriend on August 13 2024.

Giving evidence on Monday, Candiani told jurors he developed an interest in Satanism after he began a theatre studies course at the Brit School of Performing Arts.

He described to jurors an occasion around 2019 when he was at home in bed and saw a “red-horned devil” who told him: “You see me now Declan, you worship me.”

Cross-examining, prosecutor Emily Dummett said: “I want to ask you about the ‘pact with the devil’ you say you made. What is it you say you agreed to do for the devil?”

Candiani said: “I agreed to be his minion, servant or slave by following his orders.

“I did literally make a pact with the devil. It would have been late 2019/2020 around that time.”

When asked to elaborate, the defendant said it was a “general” pact, “quite vague” and he had not pledged to do anything in particular.

Over the course of four years, Candiani said he had become interested in the satanic group Order of Nine Angles (O9A), which has been associated with right-wing extremism.

Ms Dummett asked Candiani whether he accepted that, between February and August 2024, he also had an interest in extreme right-wing terrorist attacks.

Candiani said: “No, I wouldn’t say so. I was interested in O9A satanic ideology, this aspect of demons, this world beyond our world, the devil, the occult in general.

“Far right was related material but that wasn’t really my area of interest, more O9A and satanic belief system.”

Candiani insisted he did not see the likes of extreme right-wing mass killer Anders Breivik as “anything heroic”.

However, he accepted that he heard voices that were a manifestation of his psyche that had “admired” him.

He told jurors he was interested in true crime and serial killers but denied having an “obsession” with extreme violence.

Earlier, Candiani accepted that he had a tattoo on his chest bearing a neo-Nazi symbol 88 – meaning Heil Hitler.

His mental health suffered and he went down a “rabbit hole” after his mother was diagnosed with cancer, the court was told.

The defendant told jurors: “At that time I was dealing a lot with my mum and just hated the world and I was very angry and upset and hated everything and everyone.”

He admitted applying to join a right-wing extremist group, Active Club.

He told jurors: “I came across them on Telegram and joined the chat and I saw a lot of videos and pictures of guys lifting weights, boxing, camping and I saw they were taking steps to improve their bodies. Self-improvement.

“Because of what I was going through – self-harming, sinking deeper into depression – I thought this might be a way to get out of the house and what’s going on with my mum.”

Defence barrister Alex Jamieson asked: “Did you understand they were a nationalist group?

Candiani replied: “I never saw them advocating any violence or a revolutionary group, it was quite vague what their point was.”

Mr Jamieson asked what he meant when he told the group he wanted to “help my race and nation”.

The defendant said: “I thought this was what they wanted to hear. I was more interested in helping myself than my race and nation.”

Ultimately, Candiani said he got “cold feet” and stopped engaging with the group, the court heard.

He also denied seeking out, discussing or sharing any terrorist documents.

Candiani, from Streatham, south-west London, has denied four charges of collection of information likely to be useful for terrorism.

The Old Bailey trial continues.