Invasion Day homemade bomb incident in Perth deemed a ‘potential terrorist act’

Authorities have confirmed that an alleged homemade bomb thrown into a crowd at an Invasion Day rally in Perth is being treated as a “potential act of terrorism”.

A 31-year-old man was charged Tuesday with intent to cause harm to endanger and making or possessing explosives under suspicious circumstances.

In a joint statement made by WA Police, Australian Federal Police and local security agency ASIO, it was stated that investigations are continuing.

“Other accusations have not been ruled out,” they said.

“There is no threat to public security”

Anyone with information or views regarding the alleged incident is asked to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

WA Police allege the man threw a homemade bomb into a crowd of more than 2000 people in Perth’s CBD but it failed to explode.

A woman who wished to remain anonymous told ABC Perth she saw a sock depicting the character Elsa from the Disney movie Frozen fall on the leg of a girl standing next to her and land on the floor.

“This was alarming, so I immediately looked up to see where it was coming from and then looked at the object,” he said.

“It was an Elsa sock – the Frozen character Elsa – a children’s sock and there was something inside I didn’t know what it was, but I didn’t touch it.

“There was no internal combustion, nothing, but it just looked weird.

“It was weird that someone would throw an object into the middle of the crowd.

“With everything going on right now, I just thought… weird.”

The woman handed the object over to the police, worried that someone might step on it.

Officers claimed a glass container filled with liquid, ball bearings and screws was found near the front of the stage.

One person was arrested and detained at the scene, while police officers canvassed the area to ensure there were no other devices in the area.

The man’s home was also raided and searched by police on Monday evening.

The man, who cannot be named because his identity is withheld, appeared in the Perth Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

His duty lawyer, Madison Darch, withdrew his bail application but requested that the man’s name be withheld due to concerns for his safety and people he knew.

“I would be concerned about being in a custodial setting if (the defendant) is identified as someone who faces allegations that his or her safety would be at risk in a custodial setting,” Ms Darch said.

“I see concerns expressed every day about the prison system and understaffing; there is a real and serious risk if he is identified.

“I can’t think of a situation where a class of people could be targets and appear to be at risk from the alleged crime.”

The judge accepted the request and the case was postponed to February 17.

Also on Tuesday, WA Police released CCTV footage of the moment the alleged explosive was thrown into the crowd.

The footage shows a man wearing a black shirt and a face covering throwing an object at a group of protesters from the balcony level above Forrest Chase.

They are then seen running away from the balcony.

In the video, the object can be seen bouncing off a woman’s leg.

The device, which contained balls, screws and liquid in a glass container, was taken into preliminary examination by police forensic teams.

Speaking to ABC radio, WA Police Commissioner Col Blanch described it as a “viable, improvised explosive device”.

“It had the potential to explode and injure or kill a lot of people,” he said.

Asked directly whether it was a bomb, Mr Blanch said: “Yes, definitely. It’s a bomb. A homemade bomb.”

Police think the man tried to ignite the device with a fuse or similar method, but the device did not explode.

“We came very close to potentially mass casualty,” Mr. Blanch said.

“I’m not exaggerating this. This could have been a mass casualty event.”

Mr Blanch praised the quick response of police officers on the ground.

“The Police Forward Commander made a very difficult decision and absolutely the right decision to evacuate the area. In the midst of a peaceful protest, we made the decision to save lives in the event this device exploded,” he said.

At the time, Mr Blanch said further investigations would determine whether this was an act of terrorism.

“We need to determine whether there is a political, religious or ideological motivation for it to be a terrorist act and whether the person who committed this act was trying to further these aims. That’s where we are in the investigation,” he said.