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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
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| Judge discharges bomb plot jury | Judge discharges bomb plot jury |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| A jury in the trial of two men with British National Party (BNP) links accused of plotting explosions has failed to reach a verdict. | |
| Robert Cottage, 49, and David Jackson, 62, both from Lancashire, had denied conspiracy to cause explosions with intent to endanger life. | |
| The judge at Manchester Crown Court discharged the jury on Thursday and ordered the men be found not guilty. | |
| The Crown Prosecution Service said there would be no further retrial. | |
| The jury informed Mrs Justice Swift they were unable to reach a verdict on the charge after deliberating for more than a day and a half. | |
| Guilty plea | |
| It was the second trial the men had faced after a previous jury failed to reach a verdict in February. | |
| The conspiracy to cause explosion charge was dropped for both men. | |
| A former not guilty verdict was also entered for Jackson, of Trent Road, Nelson, with respect to the charge of possession of explosives that could reasonably be suspected to be for an unlawful purpose. | |
| Former BNP candidate Cottage, of Talbot Street, Colne, had pleaded guilty to the possession of explosive substances during his first trial. | |
| He will be sentenced on 31 July and could face a maximum jail term of 14 years. |