From The Telegraph and the Yorkshire Post
A follower of Islamic militancy who wanted to be a terrorist was today jailed for seven years after he left a hoax bomb on a Yorkshire bus and collected materials to make explosive devices.
Nicholas Roddis, 23, of Rotherham, South Yorkshire, was given consecutive jail sentences at Leeds Crown Court of five years for engaging in the preparation of an act of terrorism, and two years for placing the hoax bomb on the bus with intent.
Roddis was charged with the offences after police found information about making an explosive device, chemicals, including acetone and hydrogen peroxide, fuse wire and a quantity of nails at his home.
Sentencing him today, Judge John Milford QC said: "You intended to make a bomb."
The three-week trial heard how Roddis boarded the Maltby to Rotherham bus service on May 8 last year wearing a false beard, and left the hoax bomb, which consisted of a bag of sugar, a clock and wires, in a plastic bag on the vehicle when he got off.
After passengers noticed the package, the bus and neighbouring houses were evacuated and an Army bomb disposal team blew up the device.
A note was found with the hoax bomb which said, in badly written Arabic: "There is no God but Allah. Mohammed is the messenger of Allah. Allah the Greatest. Allah the Greatest. Allah the Greatest." The note went on to say: "Britain must be punished" and was signed "The al Qaida organisation in Iraq".
When police raided Roddis's bedsit they found, bomb-making instructions, nails, fuse wire and chemicals including bottles of hydrogen peroxide and acetone, some of the ingredients used in the July 7 bombs.
Leeds Crown Court heard Roddis had learned about Islam in a move to convert and had recorded sermons by the radical preacher Abu Hamza. He had been fired from his job at a loans company in Sheffield, where he hung around with Muslim workers, showed them recordings of Allied soldiers being tortured and beheaded and spoke about US policy in Iraq.  "He was heard once saying that it was terrible how so many of his 'brothers and sisters' were being killed, and viewed the US soldiers as the real terrorists," said Mr Brown.
In a statement, Detective Chief Superintendent John Parkinson, head of the Counter Terrorism Unit in Leeds, said: "Nicholas Roddis is a disaffected, yet dangerous individual.  While he may not have progressed as far as carrying out an act of violence, he had already performed an elaborate bomb hoax, causing disruption and unnecessary fear to bus passengers. Furthermore, Roddis demonstrated an intent to carry out acts which could have caused harm to innocent people. He had also researched explosives and purchased potential components. In this respect, the threat he posed was real".