A judge made 36-year-old Said Namouh the first man in Quebec to be convicted of terrorism in decades and the Moroccan native now faces life in prison for his crimes.

Namouh was found guilty of four terrorism charges related to the plotting of attacks in Germany and Austria because of their military role in Afghanistan.

The Crown argued Namouh was a member of the Global Islamic Media Front (GIMF), an organization involved in propaganda and jihad recruitment and which is described as a media tool for al-Qaida. Namouh was the webmaster.

He was convicted of conspiracy to detonate an explosive device, participating in a terrorist act, facilitating an act and committing extortion for a terrorist group.

Graphic images

Namouh was alleged to have spent countless hours creating, distributing and re-distributing numerous propaganda videos that included images of deaths of western soldiers and of suicide bombings.

"The intention of the accused to reach an agreement with others to detonate a bomb in order to kill or cause damages has been established beyond a reasonable doubt," wrote Justice Claude Leblond.

"In fact, it shows that Namouh was enthusiastic about it."

Justice Leblond said in his ruling he believes the Global Islamic Media Front is a terrorist group in the eyes of Canadian law.

Namouh faces life in prison. Sentencing arguments will be held Nov. 13.

Computer gave him away

RCMP computer-crimes detectives found evidence on Namouh's computer of dozens of videos and other propaganda materials, as well as thousands of pages of transcripts from online discussions revealing he was an active member on jihad forums and message boards.

The evidence showed Namouh to have been the biggest contributor to the GIMF web site.

One post read: "I'm looking for another job that smells like terrorism, Hahaha."

Someone responded: "Be patient, and soon I'll assign you to a job that will make you happy, You'll see."

In his closing arguments, Crown prosecutor Dominique Dudemaine described the videos as Namouh's "bread and butter" and said it was clear Namouh was heavily invested in the group.

The Crown alleged Namouh produced and distributed many videos, including films on how to detonate suicide bombs and encrypt emails.

Namouh was also accused of publishing a video of the Gaza kidnapping of BBC journalist Alan Johnston by a group known as the Army of Islam, an organization affiliated with GIMF.

Evidence questioned

Namouh's lawyer questioned the Crown's evidence, saying it fell short of proving he actively encouraged anyone to commit terrorist acts.

Namouh was initially arrested in Quebec in September 2007. He has permanent residence status in Canada.

Deportation

Terrorism suspects in Toronto recently received sentences upward of 10 years in jail and the Crown is expected to ask for something similar for Namouh.

He's is expected to be deported back to his native Morroco when he gets out of jail.