Overview
- At public hearings, paramedic Joshua Gomperts testified that a firefighter pulled a hunting knife and threatened to skin him at a regional Victoria music festival.
- Police at the festival overheard the threat and responded, and the firefighter’s managers later replaced the crew on duty.
- Gomperts also described a patient performing a Nazi salute and stating he was an old Nazi who did not want a Jew to touch him.
- An interim report from the commission raised concerns that New South Wales Police were warned about a potential attack at a Jewish event but did not act.
- Witnesses reported school bullying, swastika graffiti, heavy security at Jewish schools, and families deciding to leave, and the hearings will run into mid-May with a final report due on the commission’s timetable.