Tim Wilson event gatecrashed by white supremacist Matt Trihey
Updated ,first published
It has been revealed that shadow treasurer Tim Wilson sold his bayside home because he “no longer felt safe” as he was targeted at a community event by the same far-right activist for the third time in nine months.
The treatment of Wilson and the bomb hoax that led to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s evacuation from The Lodge in Canberra this week have again raised the issue of MPs’ safety and concerns about a rise in reported threats.
Police are investigating white supremacist and serial protester Matt Trihey, who crashed Wilson’s event at Bentleigh East’s Boundary Hotel on Thursday night.
Thursday night Wilson’s “How do we build a respectful society?” topic forum. According to the deputy, it was interrupted “when men charged in… two started recording and one started yelling.”
In the video posted on social media, Trihey, the leader of the far-right National Labor Alliance, is seen entering the forum, then pointing and shouting at Wilson while the mostly elderly crowd watches. Trihey is heard shouting that crime and immigration are “an existential threat to our people.”
The trio of door robbers left after about 10 minutes. The men left the area when they arrived and officers investigated further, police said in a statement.
This is Trihey’s third time facing MP Goldstein. Wilson said Trihey challenged him outside the voting booth during last year’s federal election campaign and during a private meeting at a coffee shop last Friday.
“He was calm but intrusive in the middle of the meeting,” Wilson said of the cafe encounter.
“Security is becoming an increasingly larger part of our consideration, as I have previously been targeted with antisemitic threats for defending the Jewish community and homophobic threats in an increasingly unstable political environment.”
Before Thursday’s incident, Wilson had outlined allegations of intimidation during the federal election campaign, which escalated to the point where she and her husband stepped up private security, required police protection and eventually sold their Sandringham home, in a submission to parliament’s joint committee on election matters.
He states that “Green and Labor interests collude under the ‘orange’ banner” and claims: “While they present themselves with integrity, the evidence clearly shows highly dishonest, fraudulent and at times illegal behavior.”
The presentation also alleges “an offensive and homophobic whisper campaign waged throughout the community by orange volunteers” and cites academic research on harassment of LGBTQ politicians.
Wilson argued the events were part of a broader pattern “leading to a clear shift for the worse in the political culture in Goldstein” in the 2025 election, when he won the seat by 175 votes from teal independent Zoe Daniel.
“The election contests in Goldstein before the 2022 election were tough but respectful between opposing candidates based on competing views,” Wilson wrote.
“This changed with the arrival of a new political force at the end of 2020 that led to dishonest and extremist behavior.”
In June, Zoe Daniel made accusations of “unfair” tactics employed by the Liberal Party and its “surrogates”, specifically naming groups such as Advance and Repeal the Teal. Describing the campaign against him as “bad” and “personal”, Daniel explained that he had been the target of smear campaigns that falsely labeled him as antisemitic and a supporter of terrorism.
The committee is examining campaign behavior, third-party activism and election laws as part of its post-election review.
Australian Federal Police investigated 950 politically motivated threats in the 2024-25 financial year; This figure increased by 63 percent compared to the total of the previous four years.
Opposition Leader Angus Taylor said the Wilson incident was “unacceptable” and had spoken to Albanese about the behavior faced by politicians following the bomb hoax.
“I understand that not everyone agrees with what politicians do and not everyone likes politicians and parliamentarians, but this kind of violence is simply unacceptable,” he said.
In the last federal election, Trihey was part of a coordinated group of neo-Nazi associates who ambushed politicians on the election trail, protesting and asking questions about immigration.
Angus Delaney is a reporter for The Age. Email him at angus.delaney@theage.com.au or contact him securely on Signal at angusdelaney.31.Connect via email.
Rob Harris is the national correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, based in Canberra. He is a former European correspondent.Connect via email.
