John Nuttall and Amanda Korody are shown in a still image taken from RCMP undercover video. A jury has heard that the B.C. couple accused of plotting to bomb the provincial legislature expected their homemade bombs to kill mostly government workers and first responders.

Image Credit: THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-RCMP

VANCOUVER - Accused terrorist John Nuttall repeatedly shouted "Allahu Akbar" after allegedly planting homemade pressure-cooker bombs on the lawn of the British Columbia legislature on Canada Day, his trial has heard.

Nuttall and his wife Amanda Korody were captured by hidden cameras carrying bags filled with pressure cookers out of an undercover RCMP van early on the morning of July 1, 2013.

As the van, driven by an undercover officer, pulls up to the legislature in Victoria, Nuttall points out his target.

"There it is, brother," Nuttall says.

"How much is going to be left of it?" asks the officer, who can't be identified.

"Hopefully none," replies Nuttall.

Nuttall and Korody have been preparing for this moment for months, talking through their plan with the undercover officer and building pressure-cooker bombs using instructions they found on the Internet.

In the back of the van were three pressure cookers that Nuttall and Korody believed contained C-4 plastic explosives. The RCMP ensured the bombs were inert, the Crown has said.

A day earlier, they had identified two bushes where they planned to drop the bombs with timers set to detonate between 9 and 10 a.m.

In the video, Nuttall says an Arabic phrase that translates to "in the name of Allah" as he carries two of the pressure cookers out with him. Shortly after, Korody steps out of the van with her pressure cooker, as well.

Nuttall returns several minutes later. He appears full of energy, speaking quickly in a loud voice.

"Allahu Akbar," he says repeatedly, using an Arabic phrase that means "Allah is the greatest."

Nuttall and Korody were recent converts to Islam who previously told the officer they were inspired by al-Qaida propaganda and wanted to avenge the mistreatment of Muslims overseas.

Nuttall tells the officer he encountered a homeless man as he dropped off his bombs and that he almost used a knife he had to kill the man.

"I was going to kill him," says Nuttall. "We're not playing games. ... Stick it right in, I'd sever the artery. He's dead."

The undercover Mountie, who has been in the witness box as most of the videos have played, acknowledged police did not anticipate the man in the bushes. He said it was not a pleasant surprise.

Korody said she placed her bomb and covered it with branches. She said she was sure no one would find it.

The video ends as Nuttall, Korody and the undercover officer abandon the van and switch into a getaway car, after which their conversations are captured by a hidden microphone.

Nuttall declares the mission a success.

"We got away with it," he says. "It’s just a matter of time."

He tells the officer he doesn't feel good about the prospect of killing people, but he calls it "moral jihad."

"You know it's going to happen," the officer says. "How do you feel?"

"I'm proud of what I did," says Nuttall. "It's a war, brother. It's a war on Islam and that's it. We're soldiers."

The officer has told the couple the plan is to catch a ferry to the Vancouver area, where they will stay in a safe house.

The Crown has told the jury the pair were arrested at the safe house.

Nuttall and Korody have each pleaded not guilty to four terrorism-related charges.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2015