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British teacher pleads guilty over terrorism offences British teacher pleads guilty over terrorism offences
(about 4 hours later)
A respected chemistry teacher from Bolton accused of planning to fight with Islamic State (Isis) in Syria has admitted terrorism offences. A chemistry teacher from Bolton accused of supporting Islamic State (Isis) in Syria could be facing a life sentence after admitting terrorism offences.
Jamshed Javeed, 30, who taught pupils at Sharples high school in Bolton, Greater Manchester, pleaded guilty to two counts of engaging in conduct in preparation of terrorist acts, including assisting others, at Woolwich crown court in London on Monday. Jamshed Javeed, 30, who taught pupils aged 11-16, admitted he was on the verge of going to the conflict-torn country to fight before he was arrested in December. His family, having noticed a change in his appearance and behaviour, had tried to stop him, even hiding his passport to prevent him leaving the UK, but he told them he wanted to go regardless of their wishes and applied for a new one.
The married father of two admitted that he had intended to travel to Syria to join fighters against Bashar al-Assad’s regime but was thwarted when his parents hid his passport. He was arrested after applying for a new one. On Monday, Javeed pleaded guilty to two acts of engaging in conduct in preparation for undertaking terrorist acts in Syria, including providing funding and buying equipment to help others to commit acts of terrorism there. Each of the counts carry a maximum life sentence.
Javeed also admitted he paid for his younger brother, Mohammed, and another man to fly to Syria to join rebels fighting against the regime. Javeed, who appeared in court flanked by two security guards will be sentenced on 12 December.
But he insisted, in a five-page basis of plea, that he has never supported Isis, that he is not an extremist and that he was “misled into a mistaken belief that he was free to travel to Syria”. Police said from August last year, Javeed supported Isis and planned to leave his then pregnant wife behind to join them. He had bought equipment to take with him and had given money to help other fighters travel there, they said.
Police claim the teacher began to support Isis last August when he was radicalised and his appearance and behaviour began to change. His family noticed the change and tried to stop him travelling to Syria, but he ignored them, they said. DCS Tony Mole, head of the north-west counter-terrorism unit, said: “Javeed was an otherwise law-abiding man who had a responsible job, a child and another on the way, and respected. However, from August last year both his appearance and behaviour started to change and in a short space of time he started to support the Isis cause and those planning to travel to Syria.
DCS Tony Mole, head of the north-west counter-terrorism unit, said: “Javeed was an otherwise law-abiding man who had a responsible job, a child and another one on the way, and was respected. However, from August last year, both his appearance and behaviour started to change and in a short space of time he started to support the Isis cause and those planning to travel to Syria. “His family grew suspicious and were clearly intent on stopping him, but he ignored their pleas and told them he was determined to go through with his plans to travel to Syria.”
“His family grew suspicious and were clearly intent on stopping him, but he ignored their pleas and told them he was determined to go through with his plans to travel to Syria. He had bought equipment to take with him and had given money to help others travel there. Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, the Metropolitan police commissioner, claimed last week that at least five young Britons a week were travelling to Syria to fight alongside jihadis, joining hundreds already thought to have left.
“What this case tells us is that the earlier we can be told about someone’s intentions to join a group like this, the better. Ideally, we would like to stop people well before they get to this stage. That is why we say that if you are concerned about a friend or family member who has gone missing, you should contact the police via the 101 non-emergency number.” Javeed, of Levenshulme, Manchester, insists he did not support Isis and that his motivation in travelling to Syria was to support rebels engaged in opposing Bashar al-Assad’s regime. In the five-page basis of plea submitted by his defence lawyers, Javeed said he is not an extremist, but a “practising and sincere Muslim” and that he was misled into a belief that he was free to travel to Syria.
The first charge against Javeed states that he intended to help others to commit acts of terrorism by providing funding and purchasing equipment between 1 July 2013 and 12 March this year. The second charge alleges that he made travel plans, obtained a passport and purchased equipment with the intention of committing acts of terror in Syria between the same dates. “He has never supported and does not support the aims of Isis as now revealed and understood,” it said. “He does not support suicide bombings, the execution of hostages, or forcing non-Muslims to convert to Islam.”
The basis of plea submitted by Javeed’s lawyers said: “He has never supported, and does not support, the aims of Isis as now revealed and understood. He does not support suicide bombings, the execution of hostages or forcing non-Muslims to convert to Islam. The document goes on to say Javeed believed the actions of Isis have “shifted the focus from defeating Assad”.
“Jamshed Javeed believes that as a result of Isis’s actions – attacking other rebel groups and its brutally executed ambition to create a new caliphate in the region – it has shifted the focus from defeating Assad, who is now in a much stronger position.” It stressed he “would not travel to Syria now. There is no coherent rebel force seeking to defeat Assad. He is appalled at the indiscriminate brutality of Isis. He does not believe in imposing his religious beliefs on others, nor does he believe that murdering innocent people can ever be justified.”
Javeed says he would not travel to Syria now. “He had no interest in creating an Islamic state,” it said.
“There is no coherent rebel force seeking to defeat Assad,” the basis of plea said. “He is appalled at the indiscriminate brutality of Isis. He does not believe in imposing his religious beliefs on others, nor does he believe that murdering innocent people can ever be justified.” His motivation for travelling to Syria, the document said, was based on the suffering of the Syrian people and the failure of the international community to help.
Javeed says he discovered his younger brother Mohammed was planning to join rebels in Syria in August or September last year. It states: “He was deeply moved by images and reports of the extreme suffering of the Syrian people at the hands of Bashar al-Assad’s vicious regime.”
He transferred a total of £1,400 to his brother’s account, and accepts that £1,100 of that money would be used to fund Mohammed and another man’s travel to Syria. “It was against this background and influenced by his younger brother’s decision that Jamshed Javeed subsequently came to the conclusion that he should go to support the ordinary people of Syria.”
The basis of plea says Javeed did not recruit, advise or encourage anyone to travel to Syria. The document reveals Javeed transferred £1,400 to his brother, Mohammed, and a friend between 6 September and 1 October 2013, to go to Syria, to join rebels fighting against the regime. Mohammed is now missing in Syria.
It says the defendant is a practising and sincere Muslim and not an extremist. He was said to have been deeply moved by images and reports of “extreme suffering of the Syrian people at the hands of Bashar al-Assad’s vicious regime”. In the document, Javeed acknowledges he had spent time on certain websites and followed individuals on Twitter. “But he does not accept that he has an ‘extremist’ mindset.”
The basis of plea says: “It was against this background, and influenced by his younger brother’s decision, that Jamshed Javeed subsequently came to the conclusion that he should go to support the ordinary people of Syria. He claims he was twice spoken to by MI5 officers but that on neither occasion was he told of the risk of prosecution if he travelled to support rebels against Assad.
“He accepts that this would have meant becoming involved in some fighting as well as humanitarian relief. He also acknowledges that he spent time on the internet looking at various websites and followed individuals on Twitter. But he does not have an ‘extremist’ mindset. His motivation was no more than to play a part in defeating Assad or at least repelling his army from attacking the civilian population. The basis of plea said: “He did not consider himself to be a terrorist. He had hoped to resume his teaching career on his return from Syria.”
“He has no broader agenda than that. He had no interest in creating a new Islamic state.” On the same day that he was approached by MI5, police visited his wife, Shamelia, and provided her with a “Syria travel information and advice booklet” that implied that joining the Free Syrian Army would not constitute an offence, the document said.
He will be sentenced on 12 December. Judge Michael Topolski QC remanded him in custody until that date. He was unable to travel last November after his family took and hid his passport, the defence document said.
Prosecutors said they will consider whether they accept the basis of the plea ahead of sentencing.
The first charge against Javeed states that he intended to help others to commit acts of terrorism in Syria by providing funding and purchasing equipment between 1 July 2013 and 12 March this year. The second charge alleges he made travel plans, obtained a passport and purchased equipment with the intention of committing acts of terror in Syria between the same dates.