Seven men arrested in Sydney over fear of ‘violent act being planned’ held Islamist ideology, police allege | Sydney
Seven men detained in connection with possible planned violence in south-west Sydney are believed to adhere to a similar ideology as the Bondi gunmen and may be trying to visit Bondi, New South Wales police allege.
A NSW police spokesman said tactical operations police responded to “information that violent action was possibly being planned” on Thursday. On Friday, NSW premier Chris Minns said he was “very concerned” by the incident.
Police officers carried out a high-risk vehicle stop against two vehicles in Liverpool at around 4pm on Thursday afternoon, NSW deputy police commissioner David Hudson told ABC radio on Friday.
The seven people arrested are still in police custody and have not been charged, Hudson said. “Investigations are ongoing and continued throughout the night,” he said. The men were to be released Friday evening unless charges were filed.
Hudson said there was “no definitive connection other than potential similarities in some ideas” between these people and those who allegedly attacked Bondi, but said there was no connection at this stage.
Asked if the Bondi gunmen had a similar Islamist ideology, Hudson said: “That’s our belief at this stage, yes.”
Hudson said the men were traveling in a convoy from Victoria in state-registered vehicles and were known to Victoria police. The official said police had “some indication” that the men may have wanted to go to Bondi on Thursday. He said police “do not have a specific purpose in mind or proven at this stage”.
“This has caused us some concerns… We definitely wouldn’t want to take that risk.
“We didn’t find any weapons in the car, other than, I think, a knife. And I think that justifies our decision to go early, before they really got more skills.”
Hudson said police are seeking an extension of the state detention warrant to keep the men in custody until 7.30pm on Friday while investigations continue. He said police were trying to gather enough evidence to file charges against them.
“Following last Sunday’s atrocity, we decided that our risk tolerance and risk threshold at this time is very low, as you can understand.
“And as far as what they could do…we decided we weren’t going to take any chances.”
On Friday afternoon, NSW police commissioner Mal Lanyon said the men would be released on Friday evening if police did not have enough evidence to lay charges.
“This is a thorough investigation. If we don’t have enough evidence, we will have to release the men,” he said.
“They will continue to be monitored while they are in New South Wales and we will work closely with our Victorian and State law enforcement partners.”
On Friday, Australian Federal Police (AFP) commissioner Krissy Barrett said the incident was “an example of the high threat environment in which we operate”.
Images and photographs circulating on social media showed a white hatchback appearing to have been damaged in a collision at the intersection of George and Campbell streets in Liverpool, which was cordoned off with police tape.
The footage also shows several heavily armed police officers dressed in camouflage suits being detained lined up in front of a nearby fence with their hands zipped behind their backs.
Reports said the cars were crashed by police before the men were subdued by officers.
Victorian premier Jacinta Allan said police were “engaging with colleagues in New South Wales”.
“We have all seen the images and footage of what happened and we thank you. [NSW police] “We appreciate their quick action,” he said. “However, at this stage there was not enough information to speculate as to why these people were traveling in this vehicle in this area.”
Allan said he asked Victoria police commissioner Mike Bush for more information after he was briefed.
Additional reporting by Benita Kolovos
