A 31-year-old man from Rotterdam should be jailed for eight years for preparing to carry out a terrorist attack in the Netherlands, the public prosecution department said on Thursday.

Jaouad A was arrested last December following a tip-off from the security services. At his home in the port city police found an automatic weapon, ammunition and a large number of illegal fireworks containing almost nine kilos of explosives. On his computer they found instructions for making a bomb using gunpowder and 289 IS videos, including executions.

In evidence, the department said the AIVD security service had recorded A talking to other men about an attack on the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam, which is close to his home, the Telegraaf reported.

‘Near me you’ve got the Turkish embassy [consulate, ed]. It’s a 500 metre walk. You walk in and you shoot or you throw something. That is something I can do,’ A is quoted as saying.

A told the high-security court in Rotterdam the conversation was much longer than the eight minute transcript provided in court and that the shortened version was out of context.

The court will announce its verdict in two weeks.