Source : Perth Now news
A Brisbane private school student allegedly searched “Where is Peter Dutton located” as prosecutors alleged he identified members of the Liberal Party as potential targets because he opposed nearby nuclear power plants and did not want one built “an hour away” from his home.
The now 16-year-old boy, who cannot be identified due to his age, has pleaded not guilty in the Brisbane Supreme Court to a Commonwealth charge of committing acts in preparation for, or planning, a terrorist act.
On the second day of the trial, prosecutors completed their opening case before defence barrister Laura Reece KC told jurors the central issue was not whether the teenager researched explosives, politics and public events – but what his intentions actually were at the time.
“What is most definitely an issue is what was in his mind at the time when he was doing those acts,” Ms Reece said.
The court was told the alleged plot came to police attention after the boy’s then teenage friend contacted police on July 24, 2024, following a series of messages that raised concerns.
Prosecutors allege forensic examinations of the boy’s phone, laptop, iPad and diaries revealed months of research into explosives, bomb-making techniques, terrorism and anti-technology extremist ideology.
The jury was told that on May 27, 2024, the boy allegedly exchanged messages with the friend after sending photographs and videos of materials prosecutors allege were linked to explosive-making.
When the friend allegedly asked: “But who are you trying to kill?”, the boy allegedly responded: “members of the Liberal Party”.
Asked why, he allegedly replied: “because I don’t want a nuclear power plant an hour away from here.”
The jury heard the teenager’s alleged interest in Theodore “Ted” Kaczynski, the American terrorist known as the Unabomber, formed a significant part of the Crown case.
The boy allegedly told his friend the Unabomber was “a based woods man who proposed that the industrial system is a f—d society”.
Prosecutors allege the teenager downloaded Kaczynski’s manifesto and borrowed a library book titled Hunting the Unabomber as his interest in the extremist figure deepened.
The jury was told diary entries allegedly linked the boy’s political views to the Liberal Party’s nuclear energy policy.
In one entry, prosecutors allege he wrote: “The Liberals are proposing Australia head towards nuclear energy.”
“The other day I was thinking of trying to move on from the ideas I mentioned, but now I’m thinking of targeting the libs.”
The Crown alleges the teenager repeatedly researched Peter Dutton and nuclear energy during the four-month period covered by the charge.
Among the material allegedly found on his devices were searches for articles titled “Why Peter Dutton’s nuclear stance is so great”, “How will nuclear energy affect the environment” and “Where is Peter Dutton located”.
The jury also heard evidence of alleged searches into ecoterrorism, environmental terrorism and nuclear non-proliferation.
According to the prosecution, the alleged future terrorist act involved either using a bomb in a public place or attacks on “premises and/or persons associated with or perceived to be associated with the Liberal Party”.
The court was also told the teenager allegedly researched Brisbane’s Labour Day march, a major public event expected to attract about 20,000 people in 2024.
In one WhatsApp exchange, he alleged wrote: “I have an idea … Labour Day March in Brisbane.”
“We strike there.”
Jurors were told the boy later allegedly wrote that he was considering using an explosive device at the event.
“I don’t know if I’ll do the bomb at the Labour Day march,” he allegedly wrote in one message.
However, under cross-examination, the friend agreed he had previously told police he believed the Labour Day march discussion was a joke.
“I treated this as a joke,” he said.
Asked what he meant by describing it as “edgy”, the friend agreed it was a form of dark humour and that “They don’t mean what they’re saying.”
The friend, now 18, told the jury he met the boy at school and they were in the same science class during Year 10.
They communicated through WhatsApp, Instagram and Discord, discussed video games and films, exchanged memes and sometimes worked on accounting homework together online.
The jury heard the pair discussed the film Fight Club, including its ending where “The protagonist blows up a few buildings”.
The friend described the boy’s political views as “right leaning”.
“He disliked the Labor government, I believe,” he said.
He also recalled discussions about former Queensland Premier Steven Miles and said the boy was unhappy about what he believed was a proposed “nuclear facility” near Brisbane.
Under cross-examination, the friend agreed the teenager had spoken about concerns regarding nuclear power, its safety and environmental impact.
He said concern about a nuclear power plant being built near his neighbourhood was “one of his concerns”.
At several points during his evidence, the witness struggled to recall conversations and repeatedly apologised.
“I do not remember most of my conversations … sorry,” he told the court.
The witness also agreed the pair regularly exchanged memes, jokes and internet humour, including “rick rolls” and references to the video game Red Dead Redemption 2.
The jury heard the friend received what he described as “instructions on how to make various weapons and explosives” as well as a copy of the Unabomber manifesto.
At one point during cross-examination, the witness declined to answer a question on the grounds it may incriminate him, a position accepted by Justice Sean Cooper
The witness also became visibly overwhelmed during parts of his evidence.
In her opening address, Ms Reece urged jurors to consider the diaries in their entirety rather than focusing only on entries concerning bombs, politics and the Unabomber.
She said the journals contained the teenager’s “innermost thoughts and feelings” and documented struggles with autism, loneliness and mental health.
One entry referred to thoughts of living in a cabin in the woods to avoid thinking about explosives.
“I’ve been trying to think of living in a cabin out in the woods to draw my mind away from bombs, but I think I’ve gained an autistic interest in bombs, so it’s going to be tough to shake off,” the diary allegedly stated.
Ms Reece said jurors would also see entries about “feeling suicidal, about hurting himself, about feeling lonely and how he felt he was missing out on some things in life because of his autism”.
She said those matters were relevant to assessing the teenager’s state of mind and intentions during the period covered by the charge.
The trial continues.
