Vandal was paid $4,000 to stage antisemitic attacks

A NSW Supreme Court judge has concluded that the spate of antisemitic attacks that took place in Sydney in 2024 were not ideologically motivated but rather the work of recruits paid to do a job. The court stated: For all offences of a like kind committed between October 2024 and January 2025, the State has apparently accepted the conclusion of NSW Police that the direct perpetrators were arranged by organised criminals. With respect to the defendant, the Director of Public Prosecutions in the Local and District Courts and the Crown Solicitor on behalf of the State in this proceeding have taken the position that he is the single exception. That is contrary to the assessment made by Counter Terrorism officers at the outset of the investigation of the index offences and contrary to the overwhelming weight of evidence. I reject the State’s position. I accept, unreservedly, the defendant’s case that he was recruited to commit the index offences and instructed in detail as to where and how they should be carried out.