Man arrested after 6 Brit children rescued from cellar is 'conspiracy theorist'

29 January 2023 , 16:53

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Tom Landon (Image: Twitter)

A conspiracy theorist and alleged holocaust denier arrested after six British children were rescued from a cellar has been named, it is reported.

Tom Landon was reportedly seized by police in the Austrian village of Obritz after allegedly attacking two social workers - who had come to question him - with pepper spray.

The Mirror previously reported that six children born in the UK, and a woman, were found in a wine cellar under the property where they had been living.

The children, aged between six months and seven years, were found under the property alongside several guns.

Local authorities said neighbours "became worried" as they heard children's voices coming from the cellar, but they would go quiet when people approached.

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Landon's British wife, 40, was also questioned by authorities and both are understood to have since been released after it was determined they posed no risk to the children.

Deputy Mayor Erich Greil (ORF)

Local reports from the Kronen Zeitung say the Landon was "known to officials" and "was firmly convinced of bizarre conspiracy theories."

It added: “The presumed Reich citizen is known to officials, was firmly convinced of bizarre conspiracy theories and had apparently completely ‘drifted away’ since the Ukraine war."

A local resident said: "Of course we knew the suspect. He also wanted to buy our cellar last year but nobody really knew anything about what was going on."

Landon "wanted to buy our cellar last year," a resident said (OrfTV)

None of the children are registered in Austria and it is reported they were taken temporarily into care.

Stefan Loidl of the Austrian Police said the children were taken to hospital and examined in front of their mum.

There is currently no reason to think the children have been mistreated. Greil said he saw them walking around the village around two weeks ago and everything appeared normal.

The children were examined with their mum present (OrfTV)

Cops were reportedly told by Landon that he planned to stay in the cellar, believed to have been brought through a British company, for a day or two longer.

Deputy Mayor Erich Greil told The Times: "He’s not from here and has only been Obritz for a short time.

"Before that, he apparently lived in England. I think he worked in the IT sector."

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One of Landon's books says he was based in East Finchley.

Landon lived with his family in England before moving to Austria, it has been reported (ORF)

The Mail reports that Landon has self-published his own books including the titles 'The Destructive Effect of Information Technology on Human Intellectual Development', 'Dirty Justice' and 'The Judas Principle'.

Greil said previously: "The surveillance cameras in front of the cellar were particularly annoying, and residents sometimes heard children's voices in the basement, and as soon as they approached it was quiet."

Greil said the security cameras were "annoying" (OrfTV)

The Deputy Mayor also said Landon "wanted a cellar for each child."

Obritz is around 60 miles north of the Austrian capital Vienna, near the border with the Czech Republic.

Landon is reported to be a Reichsburger, a revisionist group that believes Germany in its current form is not a sovereign state. Some of its members are right-wing extremists.

Obritz is around 60 miles north of Vienna (ORF)

A police source told the Mail: "The man has been questioned and has now been released. Now with Interpol we are working to identify the children who we believe may have been born in the UK.

"The man and his wife, who is British, had certainly lived in the UK and had connections there. The children have been taken into the care of local authorities temporarily.

"The prosecutor has also been informed as the man attacked officers with pepper spray and he faces charges for that."

Landon is also reportedly a prepper, a person who thinks a catastrophic disaster is on the way. They often store food and other supplies like ammunition.

Benjamin Lynch