Man in court over terrorist execution videos

Faseh Sajid was just 18 when he began sharing graphic videos on Telegram, the court heard

A teenager shared terrorist videos featuring armed fighters and executions on an encrypted chat group, a court has heard.

Faseh Sajid, now 21, was 18 when he began sharing videos glorifying the so-called Islamic State (IS) terrorist group on Telegram, the Old Bailey was told.

The jury heard the material was uncovered on his iPhone after police searched his home in Speedwell, Bristol, in November 2022.

He is now on trial at the Old Bailey in London, charged with six counts of disseminating terrorist publications.

Jurors were shown videos in court, with the some 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 and had shared images with caveats to "distance himself" from repercussions, prosecutor Frederick Hookway said.

Asked by another user why he went under a non-Muslim name, he allegedly said: “Not tryna get arrested.”

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 denies the charges against him and the trial continues.