A teenager has appeared in court after allegedly threatening the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, ahead of his contentious visit to Australia.
Darcy Tinning, 19, has been accused of threatening to shoot the head of state with a pistol in a 19 January post on the social media platform X. He’s also accused of threatening to kill Donald Trump.
His alleged threat to Herzog included a violent remark referencing extinction, which federal prosecutors said constituted hate speech and risked inciting others with similar views.
The Newtown man was arrested on Wednesday and charged with one count of using a carriage service to make a threat to kill, before being refused police bail. He appeared in a Sydney court on Thursday.
Given Herzog was set to arrive in Australia on Sunday, a prosecutor told the court that the teen posed a risk to the community due to the violent nature of the threats.
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The prosecutor said the threat to Herzog was made amid heightened tensions after the Bondi terror attack in December.
“The current heated climate, the unrest in the community, makes the threats very serious,” the prosecutor told the court.
“Unacceptable risks exist which cannot be mitigated if the defendant is released in this climate of political unrest.”
Tinning’s lawyer, Brendan Green, told the court that his client’s comments were “completely inappropriate” and could result in significant jail time, but stressed they were not directed at any particular people or group.
There was no real suggestion the teen would follow through on the threats, he said.
Neither Tinning nor his family have any access to firearms and he does not have a history of violence, Green told the court.
The hearing will continue on Thursday.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: theguardian.com
