An Islamic State (ISIS) supporter today pleaded guilty to a string of terror charges, including a plot to attack Britain's Prince George at his London school.
Husnain Rashid, who was undergoing a trial on the terror charges at Woolwich Crown Court in London this week, brought to an end the proceedings with a change in his plea from not guilty to guilty.
Last October, the 32-year-old had posted a photograph on the encrypted Telegram social media forum of Thomas's School in Battersea, south-west London, where the four-year-old son of Prince William and Kate Middleton studies.
The image was superimposed with silhouettes of two masked extremist fighters with a follow-up message listing the full address of the school along with the message: "Even the royal family will not be left alone. School starts early."
Prosecutors told the court that Rashid had also encouraged followers to poison ice cream and attack football stadiums and was even planning his own online magazine offering tips for "lone-wolf attacks".
Judge Andrew Lees told him that the trial had heard the "most disturbing allegations" and added that "it is inevitable that you will receive a very lengthy prison sentence and there will be a consideration of a life prison sentence."
"The question of your future dangerousness and the protection of the public is a matter that I will have to give very careful consideration," the judge said.
After his change to a guilty plea today, Rashid will be sentenced on June 28 at Woolwich Crown Court for terror offences spanning from October 2016 to April this year.
The unemployed web designer was in contact with an ISIS operative in Syria called "Repunzel" and sent him information about how to make explosives and shoot down aircraft and was seeking to get to Syria to join the terrorist group.
He appeared in court with a large beard, wearing a grey prison sweatshirt, glasses and a black prayer cap.
The court heard he was running his own "brand" on the Telegram app called the "Lone Mujahid", which he used to share advice and encourage attacks. He also allegedly posted a map of Sixth Avenue in New York with the message: "New York Halloween Parade. Have you made your preparations? The Countdown begins."
Other posts included a photograph of the Burmese ambassador to the UK with the address of the Burmese embassy saying: "You know what to do."
Rashid was said to have urged people to "fight and spill the blood to the apes in your land", besides making posts such as: "Start planning, start scouting targets, start monitoring entry/exit routes, start preparing tools and weapons /explosive."
The court was told he prepared acts of terrorism between January and November last year by "messaging individuals he believed to be in ISIS territory, seeking advice about routes to travel to Syria, saving money in order to travel, purchasing equipment, and seeking to obtain tazkiyah (a sponsor), to join ISIS."
Lancashire police said he had posted 360,000 messages on 150 different chat threads on Telegram. He was arrested at his home at Nelson in Lancashire, north-west England, in November 2017.
Nearly two weeks into the trial, Rashid has now been re-indicted after he pleaded guilty to three counts of engaging in conduct in preparation of terrorist acts. He also admitted one count of encouraging terrorism.
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