German court convicts ISIS-inspired terrorist of biological bomb plot

Extremist tested highly toxic ricin on pet hamster, which survived

Defendant Sief Allah H. holds a folder in front of his face during his trial for planning a foiled biological bomb attack with the deadly poison ricin. AFP / dpa / Federico Gambarini

A German court on Thursday convicted a Tunisian man of planning an ISIS-inspired biological terrorist attack.

The Dusseldorf Regional Court found Sief H, 31, guilty of making a biological weapon and preparing an attack.

He has been sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment.

Federal prosecutors accused the man, whose surname was not released because of German privacy rules, of buying thousands of castor beans to produce the highly toxic ricin, which he tested on a dwarf hamster. It survived.

The defendant and his wife, 44, also bought 250 ball bearings and made explosives before they were arrested at their apartment in Cologne in June 2018.

Prosecutors said their plans for an attack, which could have killed many people, was at an advanced stage.

The defendant denied planning an attack, claiming that he wanted to practise his skills for when he joined ISIS.

A verdict in the case against his wife, Yasmin H, is expected soon.