Islamic extremist from Weymouth jailed for terrorism

Richard Dart was sentenced at the Old Bailey in London with co-conspirators Jahangir Alom and Imran Mahmood after admitting engaging in conduct in preparation of acts of terrorism.

The court was told that the military tribute town of Royal Wootton Bassett and members of the security services were among targets discussed.

Former Wey Valley student Dart, 30, Alom and Mahmood were told by a judge they held 'radical Islamist beliefs and have shown yourselves to be committed to acts of terrorism'.

Former Police Community Support Officer Alom was jailed for four years and six months, and Mahmood for nine years and nine months.

The trio admitted the offence between July 2010 and July last year at a previous hearing last month.

Mahmood and Dart were both given extended sentences, meaning that they will serve two-thirds of their prison terms rather than half, and they will spend five years on licence after release.

Dart, who became involved in extremism after moving to London from Weymouth, refused to stand when he was sentenced, saying: I don't wish to stand up, I believe ruling and judging is only for Allah.''

Judge Mr Justice Simon said that they were all 'committed fundamentalists' who would have been prepared to kill.

He told Dart and Mahmood: ''I'm satisfied to the required criminal standard that neither of you had ruled out an attack in the United Kingdom, and that you, Mahmood, were looking at arming yourself with a bomb.''

Dart, who changed his name to Salahuddin al Britaini when he converted to Islam, and Alom travelled to Pakistan to try to get terrorist training, and took advice from Mahmood who had already visited the country.

Former BBC security guard Dart also discussed bomb making with Mahmood, and military repatriation town Royal Wootton Bassett as a potential target Police discovered fragments of text on Dart's laptop that revealed that the pair had used the computer to have a 'silent conversation' to avoid possible surveillance bugs.

They would open a Word document and take it in turns to type, before deleting the text and mistakenly assuming that none of it would be stored on the machine.

However forensic experts were able to plough through 2,000 pages of computer code to decipher fragments of what was said.

These included Mahmood making a reference to Wootton Bassett and then adding 'if it comes down to it, it's that or even just to deal with a few MI5 MI6 heads'.

Counter-terrorism teams also believe that the pair used the same tactic walking down the street with a mobile phone.

The trio were arrested on July 5 last year just before the start of the Olympics, and were charged on July 18.

A pre-sentence report concluded that the trio are all dangerous offenders.

Dart, of Broadway, Ealing, west London, Mahmood, 22, of Dabbs Hill Lane, Northolt, west London, and Alom, 26, of Abbey Road, Stratford, east London, had all been stopped at airports while travelling to and from Pakistan.

Ali Naseem Bajwa QC, for Dart, earlier said that he only wanted to fight military forces in Afghanistan.

And he told Mr Justice Simon that Dart was 'far from realising' his goal of actually getting terrorist training in Pakistan.

Dart, the father of a four-month-old daughter, had also not carried out any offence after being stopped, questioned and then released at Heathrow Airport in 2011, Mr Bajwa said.

Mr Justice Simon said at the sentencing that Alom and Dart were the 'object of suspicion' for their fellow radicals, and may have felt the need to prove themselves.

Deputy assistant commissioner Stuart Osborne, from the Met's counter-terrorism command, said after the hearing: ''These are dangerous men.”

He added: ''This case serves as a classic example of how terrorists live in our midst while preparing their acts and their determination to travel overseas to train before returning to the UK.

''It also illustrates the balance we need to achieve between maintaining public safety while gathering sufficient evidence to secure a conviction while maintaining the confidence of all our communities.''

Mark Topping, specialist counter-terrorism lawyer for the Crown Prosecution Service, added: “'Although the men did not identify any specific targets for an attack, their determination and intent were very clear.”

Former Wey valley pupil Richard Dart worked as a BBC security guard before falling under the influence of extremist preacher Anjem Choudary.

Coun Pam Nixon, who is a former Wey Valley librarian and a trust governor, said: “It is quite tragic that someone from Weymouth has been drawn into this sort of situation and for it to end up the way it has.

“It is not something which has happened while he has been down here. People's lives take different paths when they leave their home ground.

“There must be thousands of students all over the world from this area all doing something different and there are many success stories.”

Former Wey Valley teacher Clive Burgess added: “Thousands of pupils have passed through Wey Valley and how they live afterwards is down to their own personal responsibility.”

Councillor Bill White, who is a former primary school headteacher, said his thoughts went out to Dart's family.

“They are very nice people and a wonderful family.

“My heart goes out to them.”

Coun Kate Wheller, bourgh council spokesman for social inclusion, said there was no suggestion Dart was involved in extremism during the time he was in Weymouth.

There is no evidence of such activities in Weymouth and we are assured by the Muslim community in Weymouth that these activities do not take place.”

“We are and always have been a very inclusive and middle of the road area.”

Dart became involved in extremism after moving from Weymouth to east London and fraternising with radical preacher Anjem Choudary.

His beliefs were brought into the spotlight as part of a television documentary My Brother the Islamist, by his stepbrother Robb Leech.

The film was broadcast on BBC Three in 2011 and featured Dart having close contact with hate preacher Anjem Choudary and declaring that he backed sharia law to eradicate evil in UK society.

Bearded Dart, who had only been a Muslim for six months at that point, said: ''I support the cause of jihad, that's part of being a Muslim.''

His step-brother, filmmaker Robb Leech, had not seen him for three years before making the documentary, which he said was part of his attempts to understand why Dart had embraced extremism.

Dart, the son of teachers, moved from Weymouth to east London, where he spent his time attending extremist Islamic lectures, preaching on the streets and taking part in controversial demonstrations.

One gathering was held outside the US embassy in London on the anniversary of 9/11 and saw Choudary's supporters burning an American flag.

In the broadcast he is also seen preaching in Weymouth town centre and complaining that British culture was becoming 'more homosexual' with 'men dressing like women'.

He also bemoans the fact that people are walking around 'half naked'.

Back in London, he is seen telling another white Muslim who has just come to Britain that there are ''many misconceptions'' about al Qaida.

Dart says: ''The worst of the Muslims is better than the best of the kuffar (non-believers), that's a fact.

''That's why the kuffar will be in hell fire for eternity.''

The documentary finishes with Dart travelling to Mecca to go on pilgrimage.

The reaction to the programme led to a march in Weymouth organised by the controversial protest group the English Defence League.

It remains unclear exactly how Dart's new-found religious beliefs spiralled into hate-filled extremism.

Choudary was master of ceremonies at Dart's official conversion to Islam, a film of which was posted on YouTube, and the pair were together for Dart's first televised interview.