The sixteen-year-old charged with a terrorist plot on Anzac Day in Sydney was apparently a part of a police-run terrorism intervention program.
The Auburn teen was arrested near his home on Sunday afternoon, and charged with planning a terrorist act.
According to the ABC, he had actually been in close contact with police for the past year, after participating in an intensive new intervention program to disengage young people from the hold of IS recruiters. The program is run by AFP, NSW Police and the Victorian Police, and uses mentors, psychologists, religious leaders, teachers and work placements to try and dissuade young people from communicating with, and joing IS.
The teen had had communicated with Neil Prakash, a well-known IS recruiter, as well as a terrorism cell of five, and another young boy from Sydney (who has now also been charged).
He joined the intervention program after police raided his house last year, and told his parents of his communications. The boy’s father began accompanying him to mosques that were English-speaking, and pulled him out of school to start an apprenticeship – but it didn’t seem to help.
He was arrested hours after he attempted to purchase a gun via an encrypted app. The messages did not disclose a location, but mentioned ‘April 25’.
The teen’s lawyer Zemerai Khatiz said that his communications had been ‘taken out of context’:
“He is a 16-year-old boy who has never been in police custody, or charged or in prison in the past, so it is extremely difficult for him.The family is a very good family. They have been in this country for a very long time. They don’t have any criminal ties or any criminal convictions.My client doesn’t have any criminal convictions also … the family is devastated.”
Source: 7:30.
Photo: ABC News.
