Man sentenced for death threats against Jewish leaders
He was the first person to be charged by the Australian Federal Police under Operation Avalite, the federal taskforce established to combat antisemitic crime
A man who made death threats against Australian Jewish Association leaders has been sentenced to 14 months imprisonment to be served by way of an Intensive Correction Order in the community.
Craig Douglas Mitchell, 45, was the first person to be charged by the Australian Federal Police under Operation Avalite, the federal taskforce established to combat antisemitic crime.
Mitchell pleaded guilty at Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday to five charges, including four counts of using a carriage service to threaten to kill.
The charges related to threats made against AJA CEO Robert Gregory and then-AJA president Dr David Adler the day before they were due to address a Senate committee in 2024.
Mitchell sent an image of a hangman’s noose with the message: “If you dare show up at the senate you will all delta india echo” — the phonetic spelling of the word “die”.
He also made death threats to independent MP Alex Greenwich using a falsified Facebook account.
Gregory told the court the threats caused him significant concern and distress and left him anxious and worried about the safety of his family.
“The threats caused me significant concern and distress,” he wrote in a statement to the court, adding that the AJA was forced to bolster security measures.
Following the sentencing, Gregory said he hoped it sent a strong message that antisemitic crimes would not be tolerated in Australia.
“I thank the Australian Federal Police and the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions for their work on this matter,” Gregory said.
“The AJA, like many in the Jewish community, receives an alarming number of threats, the vast majority of which go unpunished. We therefore welcome this outcome.”
Mitchell’s lawyer Hannah Murphy told the court he was a gaming enthusiast who went down an online rabbit hole where he was influenced by alt-right, particularly Nazi, ideologies.
Murphy said Mitchell had long-standing diagnoses of autism spectrum disorder, anxiety and depression which made him isolated and vulnerable to obsessions.
Magistrate Greg Grogin rejected an application for the charges to be dealt with on mental health grounds.
“Nobody at any place, anywhere should ever be the subject of such horrific and vile threats,” Grogin said.