Sydney teenager charged for allegedly threatening to carry out mass shooting similar to Christchurch attack
Sydney teen charged over alleged threat of mass shooting similar to Christchurch attack
- 13 year old charged with shooting threats
- Promised to copy Christchurch’s brutality
A 13-year-old boy has been charged after allegedly threatening to carry out a mass shooting similar to the Christchurch mosque attack.
The boy allegedly bombarded classmates at a western Sydney school with threats of violence and referenced the actions of Australian-born terrorist Brenton Tarrant, who killed 51 people in the 2019 Christchurch mosque massacre.
Students of the state-run high school reported the matter to teachers, who then went to the police.
A NSW Police spokesperson said the Daily Telegraph Background information made them take the threats seriously.
Commanders from the Leichhardt police area visited the school at around 2.30pm on September 14 and searched the boy’s bag and phone.
A 13-year-old boy has been charged after allegedly threatening to copy the actions of the Christchurch mosque shooter at his school (stock image)
A police spokesperson said officers also executed a search warrant and “seized property.”
As a result, the boy has been charged with using carriage services to threaten/intimidate/insult and stalk/intimidate with intent to cause fear of bodily harm.
He has been granted strict conditional bail to appear in the children’s court in October.
His parents have been informed by the school.
School sources said a note had been sent to parents informing them of the incident and what action had been taken.
A spokesperson for the Department for Education said that ‘the safety and wellbeing of our students is the top priority of our schools’.
‘While we cannot comment in detail on this incident as it is under police investigation, we can confirm that wellbeing support is available to any student at the school who needs it.
Bloodied bandages are seen on the road after the Masjid Al Noor mosque shooting in Christchurch on March 15, 2019.
A spokesperson for the NSW Education Department said ‘the safety and wellbeing of our students is our schools’ top priority’, but could not comment further due to the police investigation.
“We can confirm that wellbeing support is available to every student at the school who needs it,” the spokesperson said.
Tarrant, born in Grafton NSW, was sentenced to life in prison in August 2020 for shooting multiple people at Christchurch’s Masjid Al Noor Mosque and the Linwood Islamic Centre, which he livestreamed on social media.