Anarchist Cookbook trial 'waste of time and money'

Mr Walker was cleared of possessing terrorist information at Birmingham Crown Court

A student cleared of possessing terrorist information after being found with a copy of The Anarchist Cookbook says his trial was an "overzealous waste of time and money".

Joshua Walker, 27, from Bristol, travelled to Syria in the summer of 2016 to help a Kurdish militia group.

He claims he was charged to deter people from volunteering in Syria.

The Crown Prosecution Service said it brought the case to court after "detailed consideration of evidence".

Mr Walker was arrested on his return at Gatwick Airport and the 111-page partial copy of the 46-year-old American manual was found at his university bedsit in Dan-y-Coed, Aberystwyth.

On 26 October, jurors at Birmingham Crown Court took less than an hour to clear him after hearing his account that he printed the "cookbook" for a role-playing game for a university society in 2015.

The Anarchist Cookbook contains instructions to make bombs.

Mr Walker told Inside Out West: "It's an overzealous waste of time and money really."

Josh Walker denies a charge relating to possessing terrorist information

He says he had forgotten he had the cookbook but accepted that while it wasn't illegal to possess a copy, "it didn't look the best" in the context.

"It's not actually technically against the law to have it, but when they're arresting you on suspicion of commission and preparation of acts of terror it becomes a thing because it can be argued that there's a possibility it could be used in terrorism and because they couldn't get me on anything else," Mr Walker said.

"They don't want people going to Syria."

'Deeply worrying'

His lawyer, Joel Bennathan, QC, said the case had been very "unusual" and the decision to prosecute "disproportionate".

"He is not a terrorist in the sense any member of the public, any taxpaying Briton would find," he said.

"If what he did in Syria is worthy of criminal sanction - again many people would argue it isn't - but if it is worthy of criminal sanction then litigate that.

"But to merely find a book, gathering dust in a drawer under his bed in his student room and to prosecute that under terrorist legislation does strike me as deeply worrying."

An interview with Josh Walker features on Inside Out West on BBC One West at 19:30 GMT on Monday, 30 October.