A Birmingham man who was a member of a terrorist organisation and had instructions on how to make a bomb on his phone has been jailed. Musa Abdrabba, 23, from Newport Road, Balsall Heath, acted as a self-appointed 'media activist' for Islamic State and created content for fellow members including how to avoid detection by the police.
Detectives from Counter Terrorism Policing West Midlands arrested Abdrabba in Percy Road, Sparkhill, in October 2023. They examined three phones belonging to him and found terrorism material including extremely violent videos and bomb making instructions.
Between January and October 2023, he used an alias online to provide a media service for, and on behalf of, ISIS to other supporters. He would translate social media posts, create content and engagement as well as offering advice on how to evade detection from authorities online.
Abdrabba was handed a six-year sentence after he pleaded guilty in September to two charges of belonging to a proscribed organisation. Head of Counter Terrorism Policing West Midlands, Det Chief Supt Alison Hurst said: “After Abdrabba pledged his allegiance to ISIS in August 2023, he was fully committed to the role of media facilitator to ensure their propaganda was widely shared and updated. He took it upon himself to provide a service to a proscribed organisation and posted extremist material glorifying ISIS, he had no regard for the corrosive impact or the radicalising effect that the material could have on others in our communities.”
