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| Down Under |
| Islamist threatened to slash Aussie intel officer's throat |
| 2013-05-29 |
| A young Sydney Muslim threatened to "slit the throat" and "crack the neck" of an intelligence officer and has been under surveillance for years, it was revealed in court yesterday. Milad Bin Ahmad-Shah Al-Ahmadzai, 23, is alleged to have made the threat to a member of the Joint Counter Terrorism Team (JCTT) over the phone two weeks ago. In a telephone conversation on May 2, the man is alleged to have said "I'm gonna crack your neck. Come near my family again, I'm gonna slit your throat, you pig." He was charged with threatening serious harm to a Commonwealth official. He also was also charged with using a carriage service to threaten to kill. He has previously been identified as a threat to soldiers on Australian soil. During his bail application, Al-Ahmadzai's lawyer Nick Hanna referred to his client's alleged victim as a "ghost". Hanna said the "victim, by virtue of his job, is invisible" and not under threat from his client. The victim's job was not specified in court but Hanna said, because of his position, he was an "anonymous" person. The court heard the two had met three times and had 17 telephone conversations. Hanna said the meetings were at the initiation of the alleged victim. Prosecutor Sergeant Adam Wilczec opposed bail and said the victim had made a statement fearing for his safety. Hanna said his client had did not have a history of violence despite being "under close scrutiny for a long period of time". Documents tendered to the court showed he had been suspected of links to terrorism for years. Magistrate Margaret Quinn refused bail, saying there was evidence the accused had contact with the alleged victim's family. The matter has been adjourned to July 24. Prime Minister Julia Gillard mentioned the arrest in Parliament yesterday and confirmed there was a security upgrade by the Australian Defence Force after attacks on military personnel in London and Paris. |
| Posted by:ryuge |