A man serving a life sentence for stabbing his own mother was able to view and share Isis propaganda from prison, it has emerged.

Officials told The Independent there was “no evidence” that inmates jailed with Abdul-Rehman Gul were radicalised after more than 600 pieces of extremist material were found on a hidden phone.

The 23-year-old was handed an extra three years in prison on Friday after admitting disseminating terrorist publications.

The Old Bailey heard he was arrested after a smartphone was found hidden in a stereo during a search of his cell in Aylesbury Young Offender Institution in May 2017.

Investigators found it contained hundreds of images of terrorist propaganda, including Isis execution videos, jihadi emblems and photos of Osama Bin Laden.

Timeline of the Isis caliphate Show all 19 1 /19 Timeline of the Isis caliphate Timeline of the Isis caliphate ISIS began as a group by the merging of extremist organisations ISI and al-Nusra in 2013. Following clashes, Syrian rebels captured the ISIS headquarters in Aleppo in January 2014 (pictured) AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi declared the creation of a caliphate in Mosul on 27 June 2014 Timeline of the Isis caliphate Isis conquered the Kurdish towns of Sinjar and Zumar in August 2014, forcing thousands of civilians to flee their homes. Pictured are a group of Yazidi Kurds who have fled Rex Timeline of the Isis caliphate On September 2 2014 Isis released a video depicting the beheading of US journalist Steven Sotloff. On September 13 they released another video showing the execution of British aid worker David Haines Timeline of the Isis caliphate The US launched its first airstrikes against Isis in Syria on 23 September 2014. Here Lt Gen William C Mayville Jnr speaks about the bombing campaign in the wake of the first strikes Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Isis militants sit atop a hill planted with their flag in the Syrian town of Kobani on 6 October 2014. They had been advancing on Kobani since mid-September and by now was in control of the city’s entrance and exit points AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Residents of the border village of Alizar keep guard day and night as they wait in fear of mortar fire from Isis who have occupied the nearby city of Kobani Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Smoke rises following a US airstrike on Kobani, 28 October 2014 AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate YPG fighters raise a flag as they reclaim Kobani on 26 January 2015 VOA Timeline of the Isis caliphate Isis seized the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra on 20 May 2015. This image show the city from above days after its capture by Isis Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Kurdish forces are stationed on a hill above the town of Sinjar as smoke rises following US airstrikes on 12 November 2015 AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Kurdish forces enter Sinjar after seizing it from Isis control on 13 November 2015 AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Iraqi government forces make the victory sign as they retake the city of Fallujah from ISIS on 26 June 2016 Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Iraqi forces battle with Isis for the city of Mosul on 30 June 2017 AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Members of the Iraqi federal police raise flags in Mosul on 8 July 2017. On the following day, Iraqi prime minister Haider Al Abadi declares victory over Isis in Mosul Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Members of Syrian Democratic Forces celebrate in Al-Naim square after taking back the city of Raqqa from Isis. US-backed Syrian forces declare victory over Isis in Raqqa on 20 October 2017 after a four-month long campaign Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Female fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces celebrate in Al-Naim Square after taking back the city of Raqqa from Isis. US-backed Syrian forces declare victory over Isis in Raqqa on 20 October 2017 after a four-month long campaign AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Trucks full of women and children arrive from the last Isis-held areas in Deir ez-Zor, Syria in January 2019 They were among the last civilians to be living in the ISIS caliphate, by this time reduced to just two small villages in Syria’s Deir ez-Zor Richard Hall/The Independent Timeline of the Isis caliphate Zikia Ibrahim, 28, with her two-year-old son and 8-month-old daughter, after fleeing the Isis caliphate, on Saturday 26 January 2019 Richard Hall/The Independent

Gul had used the phone to talk to other extremists on the encrypted Telegram app, which has become the main platform for official Isis propaganda.

Prosecutors said he used it to communicate with other prisoners and share and discuss the “horrifically violent” footage.

Gul had obtained propaganda from Isis’s video arm, including one titled “slaughterhouse style mass killing Islamic State”.

The Old Bailey heard he disseminated an Isis supporter’s manual entitled “How to Survive in the West”, which includes advice on obtaining weapons and evading the security services.

During a conversation in May 2017, he also asked for a jihad manual and a “popcorn” recipe, which is slang for bombs.

He went on to request screenshots of the pages, explaining he was in jail for three stabbings, the court heard.

Prosecutor Alistair Richardson told how Gul had shared material of the “most graphic and grotesque nature”, including “horrific” execution videos.

But when he was interviewed by police, Gul claimed the phone was not his and had been shared amongst inmates.

Quizzed about messages referring to three stabbings, he replied: “Sh**t you catched me out (sic).”

Abdur-Rehman Gul was handed an extra three years in prison for disseminating terrorist publications (Counter Terrorism Policing South East)

The defendant, who is now at HMP Woodhill, admitted five charges of disseminating terrorist publications in April.

Handing him a further three years in jail, Judge Richard Marks QC said: “It is of course a clearly aggravating feature that you committed this offending whilst in prison.

"In breach of prison rules, you were in possession of a mobile phone."

He continued: "It would appear even now you do not appreciate the seriousness of the offences for which you fall to be sentenced, bearing in mind your assertion that this material was freely available on the internet."

Judge Marks added that although the material was extreme in nature, a pre-sentence report had concluded that Gul himself has not been radicalised while in prison and does not hold an extremist mindset.

Gul had previously been sentenced to life imprisonment, with a minimum of four-and-a-half years, for a knife attack on his mother and two other girls in 2016.

Prior to being convicted of the terror offences, he had been eligible for parole.

Gul will also serve an additional year on extended probation, and be subject to a 10-year terrorism notification order.

Detective Chief Superintendent Kath Barnes, head of Counter Terrorism Policing South East, said: “There is absolutely no excuse for sharing terrorist and extremist footage and those already in prison are not exempt from this.

“Investigators with significant experience of the violent and sickening videos peddled by Isis described some of the footage as the most graphic they had come across, which demonstrates the extent of Gul’s mind-set.”

She pledged to work alongside prisons to ensure anyone distributing propaganda is brought to justice.

A Prison Service spokesperson said: “We have spent millions of pounds since this incident in 2017 on improving security across the prison estate to stop the use of mobile phones.

“There is no evidence that other prisoners at HMYOI Aylesbury were radicalised.”

The government recently announced the introduction of new technology to track mobile phones smuggled into prisons, which can also be used for illicit activity like drug dealing.