Muslim convert who grew up in Weymouth pleads guilty to terrorism charges

Muslim convert Richard Dart is facing a long prison sentence after admitting getting involved in terrorism.

He pleaded guilty at the Old Bailey, with Imran Mahmood and Jahangir Alom, to engaging in conduct in preparation of terrorism. They plotted to go to Pakistan to train at a terrorist camp and to travel abroad to commit acts of terrorism.

Bits of a text message recovered by police from a computer in Dart’s home referred to WB, thought to mean Wootton Bassett, the West town through which repatriated British military heroes are driven.

The three men appeared by videolink yesterday and were remanded in custody by Mr Justice Simon for reports before being sentenced, on a date to be fixed. Dart, 29, of Broadway, Ealing, west London, Mahmood, 21, from Dabbs Hill Lane, Northolt, west London, and Alom, 26, of Abbey Road, Stratford, east London, admitted being involved in the offence between July 2010 and July last year.

The case against them was that they intended to use their training to attack targets.

Another fragment of text recovered referred to “even to just deal with a few MI5 MI6 heads”. Details of the allegations were not given in court and lawyers will have to discuss their basis of plea before the facts are finalised.

Dart, the son of teachers from Dorset, appeared in a film for BBC Three My Brother The Islamist by Robb Leech, in which he is said to have become an extremist in months.