A 54-YEAR-OLD man wearing camouflage clothing went into a Blackburn town centre travel agents asking about plane tickets to the Middle East and talking about killing Islamic State terrorists, a court heard.

Blackburn magistrates heard Thomas O’Kane was later found to have a 20-inch machete in his rucksack.

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The court was told the incident was his reaction to what he perceived to be preferential treatment for immigrants.

O’Kane, of Lyndale Close, Wilpshire, pleaded guilty to using threatening behaviour in the Thomas Cook shop, possession of a bladed instrument and possession of cannabis. He was sent on bail to Preston Crown Court to be sentenced on January 11.

Catherine Allan, prosecuting, said O’Kane walked into the shop at 11.50am wearing a camouflage jacket and carrying a camouflage rucksack.

The travel consultant who dealt with him, Louise Mitchell, said she didn’t get a “good feeling” about him right from the start.

He initially asked for flights to Egypt, and when she said they were cancelled, he glared at her and said: “I’ve just got back two months ago from where I have been killing people. I just want to kill.

“He started talking about Islamic State and then asked if he could get into Syria,” said Miss Allan. “Miss Mitchell was hoping he would leave because she felt threatened.”

Angela Rossi, defending, said her client’s behaviour had been sparked by a problem with his benefits, which had been stopped after some difficulties with the job centre.

“The way he saw it was that as a UK citizen he has had very little assistance when he has found himself out of a job,” said Miss Rossi.

“He has taken the view that other people coming into the country are getting preferential treatment. For some reason, he has gone into the travel agents, where he has said things about Syria and Egypt.

“He says there was never any intention to kill anyone. The machete was never taken out of his bag.”