Jihadi-wannabe student, 26, is jailed for three years after being caught with al-Qaeda guide making ‘a bomb in your mother’s kitchen’ on his phone
- Salim Youssoufi had made copies of different editions of al-Qaeda magazine
- The 26-year-old Italian national downloaded material in Italy prior to UK arrival
- West Midlands Police found ‘dangerous’ material still on his phone once in UK
- One article in the magazine detailed creating machine with rolling blades to ‘mow down enemies of Allah’ which was called ‘The ultimate mowing machine.’
- He was jailed for three years at Birmingham Crown Court after being found guilty of four offences of possessing documentation containing terrorist information
A former student caught with al-Qaeda magazines on his phone including ‘how to make a bomb in your mother’s kitchen’ has been jailed for three years.
Salim Youssoufi, of Coventry Road, Small Heath, had claimed he downloaded the documents ‘out of curiosity’.
The 26-year-old, was today found guilty of four charges of possessing documentation containing terrorist information. following a trial.
The former electronics and telecommunications student travelled to the UK in September 2019 and moved into his Small Heath address with his wife – three months before his arrest.
Birmingham Crown Court heard the Italian national was arrested on December 13 and his mobile phone seized by West Midlands Police.
‘Contained on that telephone were four documents – electronic files – which contained terrorist information,’ said Matthew Brook, prosecuting.
Italian national Salim Youssoufi, 26, has been jailed for three years after being found guilty of possessing information likely to be useful to a terrorist which was on his phone while in the UK
He said Youssoufi, had made copies of different editions of al-Qaeda’s Inspire periodical. One had a front cover with the title: ‘Make a bomb in the kitchen of your mum.’
Another article described creating a machine with rolling blades to ‘mow down the enemies of Allah’ which was called ‘The ultimate mowing machine.’
A further article referred to ‘destroying buildings’ with explosives and gas cylinders while another highlighted the bombing of a UPS cargo plane in September 2010.
The court heard that an Islamic State propaganda video showing an execution was also found on the phone of the former electronics and telecommunications student.
In passing sentence Judge Paul Farrer QC said: ‘In February 2019 you were living in Italy and by that time held extreme Islamic views, including that your religion was under attack from Western countries and it was the duty of all Muslims to fight to protect it.’
He said in March 19 the defendant had sent encrypted WhatsApp messages ‘stating his desire to fight in Syria.’
Youssufi had also made a recording pledging allegiance to Daesh after being advised to do so by an associate outside of the UK, as part of his commitment to the terrorist organisation although he initially denied this in his police interview.
The court heard Youssoufi also had conversations with a man who was subsequently convicted of terrorist offences in Italy.
The judge said Youssoufi had downloaded the magazines between June and September 2019 while in Italy, but accepted he had not accessed them after coming to the UK.
Student Salim Youssoufi was jailed for three years at Birmingham Crown Court after being found guilty of four offences of possessing documentation containing terrorist information
But he said: ‘You sought out those documents as opposed to stumbling across them. You did so because at the time they fitted in with the extreme views that you held.’
Anya Lewis, defending, said that there had been a degree of exploitation by others.
‘He was the less-sophisticated party in the WhatsApp conversations,’ she said.
Commenting on the case, Det Ch Supt Kenny Bell, head of CTP West Midlands CTU, said: ‘In police interview, Youssufi claimed he had sought out the documents out of curiosity but it is clear that he had knowingly downloaded and possessed these illegal documents containing very disturbing and dangerous content.
‘We will continue to protect local communities by working with partners and the CPS to pursue and prosecute all those who show support for terrorism or who seek to spread hate and terror.
‘We work tirelessly to counter terrorism. Our absolute priority is to ensure the safety and security of the people who live, work and visit the West Midlands area.’