Ricin plot trial: Chemical 'bought for peaceful purpose'

The jury sitting at the Old Bailey has retired to consider its verdict

A fan of TV show Breaking Bad who allegedly tried to buy ricin should be "let off" because it can be held for "a peaceful purpose", a court heard.

Mohammed Ali, of Prescot Road, Liverpool, denies trying to buy the chemical on the dark web from a "dealer" who was really an FBI agent.

The trial at the Old Bailey earlier heard the poison was used in "multiple plot lines" in the US TV show.

The jury has now retired to consider its verdict.

The court previously heard how Mr Ali, a computer software programmer, struck a deal to buy enough ricin to kill 1,400 people.

The 31-year-old told the court he looked online for illegal items "and because I had been watching Breaking Bad TV show I just had ricin in my mind".

He was arrested at his Liverpool home in February after a toy car was delivered to the address containing five vials of harmless powder.

The court heard ricin was mentioned "multiple times" in the hit TV show Breaking Bad

Police found he had also searched the internet for chinchillas, rabbits and "pocket sized pets" after making a note for himself to test out the ricin by getting a "pet to murder".

However, his defence barrister Joel Bennathan QC told the jury the Chemical Weapons Act allows for possession of ricin if it is for a "peaceful purpose".

In his closing speech, Mr Bennathan also called for Mr Ali's Aspergers Syndrome to be taken into account.

'Computer geek'

He said: "If you look at what the law actually is and apply it to the evidence in this case, unexpectedly, this case is a no-brainer for an acquittal if you look at the phrase 'peaceful purpose'.

"Maybe it's a stupid purpose or a reckless purpose but the question you have to ask - is it a peaceful purpose?

"He said the other purpose was to test it, but he abandons the idea and decides to flush it down the loo. You could not get a much more peaceful purpose."

However, prosecutor Sally Howes QC rejected Mr Ali's defence that he was just a "computer geek" and questioned his motives.

She branded him a "chancer", and said he did not take the opportunity to say "stop calling me a terrorist, I'm a geek" because "he had not thought it through".

She said he had denied possessing the chemical when approached by police and then refused to answer questions in an attempt to "get away with it".

Mr Ali denies attempting to possess a chemical weapon.