A would-be suicide bomber told an IS contact he was willing to put on a suicide vest and “press the button on the same day”, the Old Bailey has heard.
The 22-year-old former straight-A student, Mubashir Jamil, shaved off his beard, cut his hair and bought a football and played in his back garden to make himself less suspicious, the court heard.
The court heard how the avid computer gamer became obsessed with “martyrdom” after surfing the web for IS propaganda.
Jamil, of Luton, allegedly saved almost 2,000 pounds working in an Amazon warehouse and used an encrypted messaging app on his phone in an attempt to join IS.
Jamil, who was born in Pakistan but came to the UK at the age of two, denies terrorism charges.
The trial continues.