TORONTO - Another accused in the so-called Toronto 18 terror case pleaded guilty Friday to participating in a terrorist group, a move that will see him serve one more day behind bars.

Jahmaal James, 26, made the surprise plea in a Brampton, Ont., courtroom.

Having already served more than three-and-a-half years in pre-trial custody, he was sentenced to one day.

"This was a very hard, arduous and difficult time for him but I think now he can look forward to sort of doing things differently," his lawyer Donald McLeod said outside court.

"He's a very smart young man. I think that he has a lot going for him."

According to an agreed statement of facts, the Muslim convert travelled from Toronto to Pakistan to obtain paramilitary training in November 2005. He hoped to use the training to benefit a group he had joined that was committed to furthering the cause of violent jihad in Canada.

"However, while in Pakistan James came down with a serious medical condition that limited his health and mobility," the statement reads.

"This disrupted the plan."

Crown prosecutor James Wakely said that the Crown "does not allege that James actually received paramilitary training."

Court heard he severed ties with the group before his arrest on June 2, 2006.

According to the statement, James became "disgruntled by the reckless manner" in which the Toronto terror group was being led.

"He was concerned that (the group leadership) was drawing too much attention from authorities," the statement reads.

"Consequently, James gradually severed ties" with the group.

"He still embraces the religion," McLeod said. "But he realizes he may have aligned himself with a portion that was not really to his liking and that's what he disengaged from."

The prosecution said James played a minor role in the plot.

"He was involved with the group at a preliminary stage," the Public Prosecution Service of Canada said in a release.

James was also handed three years probation as well as a firearms prohibition. He must also submit a DNA sample.

James and 17 others were arrested and charged with terrorism offences in 2006 and came to be known as the Toronto 18.

Six, including James, have pleaded guilty and two have been found guilty by a judge.

Three others face trial and seven had their charges stayed.