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Perth Terror-Accused Denied Bail After Court Hears Diary Outlined Attack Plans

A magistrate ruled the writings showed planning, keeping him in custody pending a May hearing.

Overview

  • The Perth Magistrates Court, which heard his bail bid Wednesday, refused release and kept 20-year-old Jayson Joseph Michaels in custody on terrorism and weapons charges.
  • Prosecutors said his diary mapped out training and gear goals for a so-called "day of justice" and plans to build guns and body armour using a 3D printer and a CNC machine.
  • They said he was radicalised online, with an expert report finding radicalisation likely, and that he researched mosque entry points and lock-picking while a "Watch People Die" video was open on his computer.
  • Defence lawyer Christian Porter argued the writings were escapist fantasy by a lonely, depressed youth and called the case weak, a view the magistrate rejected after reviewing the diary and device data.
  • Police said a February search of his Bindoon home found two firearms, about 900 rounds of ammunition, a lock-picking set and 15 to 20 knives, and he is due back in Stirling Gardens Magistrates Court on May 13.