The boy was 14 when federal police arrested him at his Western Sydney home in August 2024. Officers found more than 40 videos containing extremist content on his computer. The court heard he was “conducting online research into target locations and attack methodologies for the purpose of detonating explosive devices” motivated by Islamic extremism.
He told the court he was first exposed to extremist material on TikTok in early 2024 and “found it very interesting”. The content he consumed on various sites became increasingly radical and violent, and he began communicating with others online about his extremist views. He said he shared extremist content to “try to impress them”.
The boy discussed potential attack sites including the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Marathon, showing interest in emulating the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. Court documents show he attempted to obtain instructions on making a pressure cooker bomb and tried to contact the surviving Boston Marathon bomber. In a Telegram conversation, he said he was “picking the location … places where lots of people and tourists are at” and wrote “we will struck fear into their hearts”.
However, the court heard he had not taken any steps to obtain bomb-making materials. When asked if he intended to carry out an attack, he told the court he was “thinking about it” and was “50/50” before his arrest. He said he had since been “de-radicalised” and now believes the Islamic State group is “absolutely horrifying”. He told the judge he was “deeply sorry”.
His defence barrister said the boy was “a young man who has seen the error of his ways” after falling “down the rabbit hole of extremist thinking”. The boy has received religious counselling and plans to enrol at a local high school next year. He remains on bail and will be sentenced next month.