A man convicted on terrorism charges in the United Kingdom was found with a video of the Christchurch mosque shooting on his phone.
According to a statement from the Avon and Somerset Police, 25-year-old Elliot Brown was found guilty on Monday at the Bristol Crown Court of possession of terrorism-related material and distributing it, intending to, or recklessly, encouraging terrorism.
In March 2020, Brown shared a video of him explaining how to make an explosive substance in a Telegram chat group. The police say members of the group "express right-wing views and ideology".
During a separate terrorism-related investigation, police arrested an individual who had Brown's video saved on their phone. Brown was subsequently arrested by counter-terrorism officers in February 2021.
"When questioned, Brown told officers he made the video as a joke as he had a dark sense of humour, but did not harbour the same extreme ideology as seen within the chat group," the statement said.
"However, contradictory evidence was found on his phone of videos showing terrorist attacks in Germany and New Zealand, in addition to neo-Nazi imagery."
Detective Superintendent Craig McWhinnie, head of Counter Terrorism Policing South West, said Brown's actions went beyond just an interest in extremist-related material.
"The video he produced and thought appropriate to share with people harbouring similar abhorrent views will understandably shock people.
"While there is no evidence that Brown planned to commit any terrorist attack, his actions went beyond just casual talk and are a criminal offence under the Terrorism Act."
The jury at Bristol Crown Court found Brown guilty after deliberating for more than seven hours.
He will be sentenced this week.
