A Melbourne teenager charged with preparing or planning a terrorist act, arrested during police terrorism raids on Saturday, has appeared before Melbourne magistrates’ court.
Sevdet Ramdan Besim, 18, was one of five Victorians arrested during the raids and was the first of the five to be charged over his alleged involvement in a plan to carry out an attack during Anzac Day commemorations.
Besim, from Hallam in Melbourne’s south east, sat in a black jumper as he appeared before magistrate Franz Holzer, and stared at the floor. His brother watched the hearing from the public gallery.
The hearing was over in less than a minute, with Holzer ordering Besim to next appear on 30 April for a bail hearing. Besim appeared surprised that the hearing finished so quickly.
An 18-year-old Hampton Park man, Harun Causevic, appeared in the court on Tuesday facing the same charge as Besim, and was ordered also to return to court on 30 April for a bail hearing. The three other men have been released following police questioning.
On Friday, British police announced they had charged a 14-year-old arrested in England over his alleged involvement in the plot.
“We have today authorised charges for a 14-year-old male of two offences of inciting terrorism overseas,” the UK Crown Prosecution Service said, saying he had incited someone “to carry out an attack at an Anzac parade in Australia with the aim of killing and/or causing serious injury to people”.
He also allegedly incited someone to carry out a beheading in Australia, the service said.
