Jo Cox Accused In Second Court Appearance

Mrs Cox, 41, died after being shot and stabbed in the street outside her constituency surgery in Birstall, near Leeds, on Thursday.

Thomas Mair is charged with murder, grievous bodily harm, possession of a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence and possession of an offensive weapon.

He appeared via videolink from Belmarsh Prison before Mr Justice Sweeney at the central London court on Monday afternoon.

The 52-year-old from Birstall sat with his arms folded through most of the hearing, flanked by a guard on either side of him.

He wore beige trousers and a white long-sleeved T-shirt and spoke only to confirm who he was.

The defendant was asked by the court clerk if he was Thomas Mair, to which he replied: "Yes I am."

There was no application for bail from his lawyer and Mair was remanded in custody following the hearing which lasted just a few minutes.

Proceedings were adjourned for a preliminary hearing on 23 June.

The case is being heard under the terrorism protocol, although the charges Mair is facing are not terror charges.

This is because what he is accused of fits the template of the Terrorism Act - the use of violence designed to influence the Government or to intimidate the public for the purposes of advancing a political, religious or ideological cause.

Source : Sky News