A British IT consultant was arrested and interrogated for four hours after posting a LinkedIn photo of himself at a U.S. shooting range—clad in a “Guns & God” shirt blasting clay pigeons.
The incident has sparked fury over the UK’s draconian speech laws that criminalize even images of legal firearm use abroad.
The viral snapshot shows the man mid-shot by a lily-pad pond, grinning with ear protection and a Remington 870, embodying American Second Amendment joy—but in the UK, it triggered police action under the Online Safety Act for “glorifying violence.”
British Police are crazy for doing this pic.twitter.com/tGpSzzAD2O
— Basil the Great (@BasilTheGreat) November 29, 2025
The post, depicting the consultant firing at clay pigeons over serene waters in Florida, drew millions of views celebrating U.S. liberty. But in the UK, it led to a dawn raid. Officers from Greater Manchester Police arrested him for possessing an image “likely to encourage or assist” serious violence, per The Telegraph’s report.
Jon Richelieu-Booth, a 50-year-old father of two, told The Telegraph, “It was utterly absurd. I was just sharing a fun day out with friends at a shooting range in America. I didn’t think posting a photo of me legally using a gun would land me in handcuffs at 6 a.m.”
He described the subsequent night in a cell and interrogation at the hands of UK police, noting “They grilled me for four hours about whether I was planning anything violent. I explained it was a legal sport, but they seemed more interested in the gun than the context.”
Later released without charge but warned against “similar posts,” he fumed “This is what free speech looks like in Britain now—post a photo from a holiday, and you’re a suspect.”
The case, logged under Section 58 of the Terrorism Act for “collection of information useful to terrorists,” has gone viral after Elon Musk shared the post, noting “UK: Where liking a post can get you arrested, but actual riots get a pass.”
An IT consultant was arrested by police in Britain after he posted a picture online of himself posing with a gun in the US ?https://t.co/3FxqGCRWiu pic.twitter.com/opxHfNAdsd
— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) November 29, 2025
“I was told to be careful what I say online and I need to understand how it makes people feel,” Richelieu-Booth said, adding that police have since visited him at home another three times and charged him with a public offence order over another post.
“When did we go from a society where you can have a discussion with somebody and go, ‘You know what? I don’t like your opinion. I’m going to disagree with you, but I’m not going to tell you why, I’m going to call the police’, he further remarked.
“When did we get so thin-skinned as a society?” Richelieu-Booth pondered, adding “I’ve always believed in truth and justice and stood up for the police and believed they are doing an important job of keeping order. Now I have no faith in the police.”
This arrest exemplifies Britain’s speech gulag, where 10,000 were arrested last year for “offensive” online content under vague laws like the Communications Act and Online Safety Act.
It’s gotten so bad in the UK that President Trump’s administration has offered escape, exploring political asylum for British “thought criminals” persecuted under Keir Starmer—from gender critical activists to immigration critics.
This May, a U.S. DRL team visited London, uncovering a chilling erosion of freedom, with arrests for “misgendering” and “hate speech” hitting 30 daily.
The team’s report detailed how the Online Safety Act creates “priority harms” that force platforms into censorship, even for just liking and viewing posts. As the squad urged reforms, Trump’s lifeline extends hope to those fleeing Starmer’s grip, contrasting America’s freedom with Britain’s post-arrest terror.
This viral image serves as a reminder of freedoms the UK lost, with Trump’s asylum offer the last stand against the chill.
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1 rule for them and……
When muslims run amok with guns & swords & kill no police action….
When Whitey has fun with guns in a NON VIOLENT setting….at a gun range……ARREST THEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!