Bristol man found guilty of sharing videos glorifying terrorist group
21-year-old Faseh Sajid posted the content when he was a teenager
A man from Bristol has been found guilty of sharing videos glorifying the so called Islamic State terrorist group.
Faseh Sajid was 18 when he began posting terrorist videos featuring armed IS fighters and execution on an encrypted Telegram chat group, the Old Bailey was told.
The material was uncovered on his iPhone after police searched his home in Speedwell, Bristol, on November 21 2022, the court heard.
The defendant, now aged 21, had denied six counts of disseminating terrorist publications, claiming that he had not intended that anyone would be encouraged to prepare or instigate acts of terrorism.
On Thursday, a jury found him guilty of five of the charges and not guilty of a sixth.
During the Old Bailey trial, jurors were shown videos the defendant had shared, with the most gruesome images of killing blurred out.
The court was told the defendant joined a Telegram chat group in February 2022 under the false name of John Ross.
Asked by another user why he went under a non-Muslim name, he allegedly said: "Not tryna get arrested."
Prosecutor Frederick Hookway had said the defendant also posted messages distancing himself.
One thread featured a picture of an IS fighter alongside the words: "In case of investigation by any federal entity or similar, I do not have any involvement with this group or with the people in it," the court heard.
Mr Hookway suggested this was a method of "tactical deniability".
He told jurors that it demonstrated the defendant understood the potential impact of what was being discussed and shared.
The prosecutor said: "The messages were a cynical attempt to distance himself from culpability."
Sajid will be sentenced at the same court on Friday September 13.
After the hearing, Detective Chief Superintendent Olly Wright, head of Counter Terrorism Policing South East, said: "Sajid shared a large number of horrific videos including graphic beheadings, Isis footage and other content which reflected his extreme Islamist mindset.
"He attempted to cover his tracks in his social media messages but it is clear much of the material he sent could be defined as terrorist publications.
"The harm caused by sharing this type of content with others cannot be underestimated.
"It can be picked up by others and this dangerous rhetoric can then be spread far and wide."