Two separate tip-offs about Bondi gunman Sajid Akram were reportedly sent to authorities over a decade before the alleged ISIS-inspired terror attack, according to classified documents.
Akram, 50, and his son Naveed, 24, allegedly opened fire at Bondi Beach during a Chanukah by the Sea event on the evening of December 14, killing 15 people and injuring a further 40.Akram was killed by the police at the scene. His son was shot but survived and is facing 59 charges.
Eighteen years before the massacre, Akram was the subject of a tip-off to the National Security Hotline in 2007 regarding his interest in explosives, Sky News exclusively reported, citing sources who claimed the tip-offs were recorded in classified files.
Around 2014, authorities were reportedly sent a second alert over Akram’s interest in the Islamic State and possible travel.
Anthony Albanese earlier said Akram’s son, Naveed, first came to ASIO’s attention in 2019.
“He was examined on the basis of being associated with others, and the assessment was made that there was no indication of any ongoing threat or threat of him engaging in violence,” the Prime Minister told reporters in December.
The agency interviewed both Akram and his son at the time.
Revelations about the tip-offs came to light during investigations for the upcoming book Bondi Terror, which is examining what authorities knew about the father and son before the deadly terror attack.
It’s believed the tip-offs were received by the National Security Hotline before they were passed on to the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and ASIO, Sky News reports.
The outlet noted it’s unclear what subsequent action was launched by ASIO and AFP, but it’s believed “ASIO officers did not have the earlier hotline material before them when they conducted their 2019 assessment of Naveed”.
10 victims killed within the first 30 seconds
The revelations come as the Royal Commission on anti-Semitism and Social Cohesion heard that 10 of the 15 victims in the terror attack were killed within the first 30 seconds of the shooting spree.
In his opening remarks on Monday, counsel assisting Richard Lancaster SC said that within 29 seconds of the gunmen beginning their attack, 11 people were shot, 10 of them fatally.
He said four police officers were monitoring Archer Park, where the Chanukah by the Sea event was being held, at the time of the shooting, but within five minutes, 11 officers were on the scene.
Nearly eight minutes into the attack, one of the gunmen was shot and killed while Mr Akram was shot and apprehended, Mr Lancaster added.
He said the attack at Bondi Beach was a “surprise attack” and that no intelligence was received beforehand to suggest an imminent threat.
“There is no evidence to suggest any intelligence or law enforcement agency had information there may be an armed attack at the Chanukah by the Sea event on December 14, 2025,” he said.
Threat level changed prior to attack
ASIO director-general Mike Burgess told the commission the national terrorism threat level was raised to probable in August 2024, over a year before the attack.
“In terms of the word probable, it means in layperson’s terms there’s a greater than 50 per cent chance that in the next 12 months someone will advocate or undertake an act of terror in this country,” Mr Burgess explained.
The commission was told there was a “pivot” by ASIO to increase its focus on foreign interference in domestic affairs in August 2024.
Funding for the national security agency was “sufficient” to address threats concerning Australia at the time of the terror attack.
“In retrospect, I still think that our resourcing was sufficient for the problems we face,” he said.
“Of course, we are stretched, and I do have a means by which I can ask for additional resources if we need to.
Mr Burgess said funding for the national security agency was “sufficient” to address threats concerning Australia at the time of the terror attack.
“In retrospect, I still think that our resourcing was sufficient for the problems we face,” he told the commission.
“Of course, we are stretched, and I do have a means by which I can ask for additional resources if we need to.
“If we have a resource issue, I will ask government (for additional support) and government will consider that through the budget process.”
The Royal Commission will continue this week.
– With NCA NewsWire
