A court sketch shows Khurram Sher during an appearance in Ottawa on Aug. 28, 2010, on a charge related to what the RCMP say was a domestic terrorism plot. (Sarah Wallace/CBC)

Former colleagues of a suspect in a domestic terrorism plot who spent three weeks interning at a hospital in East Jerusalem in 2008 say they're skeptical of the accusations against him.

Khurram Syed Sher, 28, of London, Ont., was arrested last week and is one of three men accused of conspiring to facilitate terrorism with others in Canada, Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan and Dubai over the past two years.

Sher spent three weeks in June 2008 doing an elective rotation in the pathology department of the Maqassed hospital as part of his medical studies at McGill University. The hospital is the primary-care facility for Palestinians from Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza.

Sher's former supervisor and co-workers said they were stunned to hear of the charges laid against him.

"I don't believe that Khurram is a bad man, never," said Dr. Barkat Sharabati, a pathologist.

"He's very quiet, very nice … and he's professional," Sharabati said.

The doctor said he spent a lot of time with Sher, including having him to his home in Hebron for dinner.

Naifa Dawod, a lab technician who worked with Sher, said she was shocked to hear of the allegations against him.

"What I remember about him, he is a good guy," said Dawod. "And he work, you know, faithfully and work hard, and he likes his job."

Hospital officials also told CBC News that Sher sent a small donation to the hospital, although administrators said that is a common practice.

Sher, and two other accused men — Hiva Mohammad Alizadeh, 30, and Misbahuddin Ahmed, 26, both of Ottawa — are scheduled to return to court on Sept. 1.