White nationalist Brandan Koschel held over alleged antisemitic speech at Sydney rally
Luke Costin
A man will spend at least a week behind bars after being charged with an anti-Semitic tirade at an Australia Day rally in Sydney that he allegedly ended with a tribute to neo-Nazi leaders.
Brandan Koschel, 31, is accused of violating newly passed laws on inciting racial hatred when he gave a speech to thousands of participants in an anti-immigration march in Australia on Monday.
The 45-second speech, in which Koschel twice stated that the Jewish people are the “greatest enemy,” drew applause from sections of the Moore Park crowd and was streamed live on YouTube and elsewhere.
He was arrested a short time later and appeared in a virtual bail court hearing for his release on Tuesday.
Police said the case was strong, claiming Koschel referenced the new laws and knowingly violated them a few seconds later.
“His brazen and overt incitement to the Jewish community makes him an unacceptable risk of endangering the community,” the police prosecutor said.
Police claimed he had been seen moments earlier standing with people known to be part of or affiliated with the National Socialist Network (NSN), the country’s largest neo-Nazi group.
The court was told open source information suggested Koschel was also a member of the group.
“Free Joel Davis, hail white Australia, hail Thomas Sewell,” Koschel said before leaving the stage, referring to NSN leader Sewell and a Sydney lieutenant who called on people to “rhetorically rape” federal MP Allegra Harcama.
But lawyer Jasmine Lau, 31, said the white supremacist group had disbanded in recent weeks and Koschel was not affiliated with any “active” group.
He also belittled the large white Celtic cross on his client’s shirt during the conversation, arguing that it was not a symbol of the NSN.
“He told me it was just the Celtic cross symbol seen on the sweater,” Lau told the court.
The U.S. Anti-Defamation League’s database of hate symbols indicates that the symbol has been used by various white supremacist groups since the 1930s.
Lau said it was unlikely Koschel would meet the prison sentence threshold if convicted.
He had family ties to Sydney, no firearms licence, and a limited criminal history that did not include any hate crime-related matters.
But judge Daniel Covington was not convinced that Koschel, despite his limited criminal record, did not threaten to cause more trouble.
He said the proposed bail conditions did not include specific disorganization measures and that the views of the proposed ideology were not rejected.
“It is difficult for me to determine what conditions can be created to protect both society and the risk of further serious crime,” he said.
“There is a real risk of going to jail.”
He refused bail and remanded Koschel in custody until February 3, when the case will return to Downing Center Local Court.
Koschel remained silent throughout most of the bail hearing.
He appeared to be making a sign with his handcuffed right hand before being cut off from the police cell.
NSN announced it would disband this month in anticipation of new federal laws targeting hate groups.
Davis, a key ally of NSN leader Thomas Sewell in Sydney, said at a bail hearing on January 15 that he was no longer a member and “this page is now closed”.
He has been detained since November for calling on supporters to “rhetorically rape” Spend, whose electorate in Sydney’s east has a large Jewish population.
Davis argued rhetorically that rape was a philosophical term of art, not one that encouraged some to literally sexually assault the Wentworth MP.
