Did he want to build a bomb?

“My client is a stupid boy, but not a terrorist”

The 18-year-old on his way into the courtroom.

(Bild: Thurner Samuel/Krone KREATIV)

Because he had instructions on how to build a bomb sent to him via the internet and forwarded countless Islamic State (IS) propaganda videos, a Syrian man who had just turned 18 had to sit in the dock in Innsbruck. He was convicted, but left the court a free man.

He was four years old when the civil war began in his home country. A year later, his father was killed in a bomb attack. And when he was 14, the now 18-year-old Syrian came to Austria via the Balkan route.

FBI discovers Telegram account
In August 2023, the FBI then discovered the Telegram account of the young man, who was now living in a Tyrolean refugee home. He had used the social media platform to send himself instructions on how to build a bomb. The police also found more than 20,000 videos on his cell phone, including IS executions.

I wrote that I wanted to blow up a police car, but I wasn't serious.

Der Angeklagte beim Prozess

"It was a mistake," the defendant partially confessed. "I wrote that I wanted to blow up a police car, but I didn't mean it seriously." Although seven months had passed since his arrest, no materials for building a bomb had been found.

The lawyer's explanation
The 18-year-old was unable or unwilling to answer why the alleged IS fanatic hoarded the propaganda videos, sometimes even adding music to them and sending them on. "My client is not a terrorist, but a stupid boy," said the defense lawyer.

Syrian left court as a free man
In the end, the lay jury handed down a six-month prison sentence for forwarding the videos. However, the court was unable to prove that the young Syrian actually wanted to build a bomb and that he was a member of IS. He had already served his sentence in custody, but his defense lawyer lodged an appeal.