'Dangerous extremist' who was found with guide on how to become an assassin is jailed

A "dangerous extremist" who was caught with instructions on how to murder people and create bombs has been jailed for terrorism offences.

Mohammed Adnan Saleem, 22, was arrested in May 2020 when officers seized all his digital devices and found several banned documents including a how-to guide on how to make a pressure cooker bomb, how to make explosives and a document called "How to become an assassin".

A jury at the Old Bailey found him guilty of three counts of possessing information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism under Section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000 and was jailed for one year and six months.

Saleem, of Montrose Avenue in Luton, had been using encrypted communications to try to hide his messages and had been collecting Islamist propaganda, said police.

Hannah Wilkinson, head of ERSOU’s counter-terrorism policing unit, said: "There is no doubt that Saleem held a dangerous extremist mindset.

"He proactively downloaded Islamist propaganda and had spoken to others about his views on jihad.

"Knowing his actions were wrong, he used encrypted communications tools in an attempt to hide his messages, and subsequently tried to argue in court that the documents he’d downloaded were for ‘educational purposes'."Our specialist detectives work incredibly hard to keep our region safe from the threat of terrorism, however the public are our eyes and ears when it comes to spotting the signs of extremism."

She urged anyone who suspected one was developing extremist views or showing signs of radicalisation to contact the Prevent advice line on 0800 011 3764.

Bedfordshire Police’s Assistant Chief Constable Sharn Basra said: "There is no place in Bedfordshire for those who hold extremist views.

"We work closely with our partners through Prevent to help reduce the risk of people of all ages and backgrounds from being radicalised into holding extreme ideological views.

"Our communities are our eyes and ears for this, so if you think someone you know may be being radicalised, it’s important you take action and speak out.

"If you see or hear something that doesn’t seem right, please trust your instincts and act early, especially if the people you love and know have started to have extreme views or are just acting differently to before. Reporting won’t ruin lives, but it could save them."

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