The revelation that a suspected anti-Semitic terror plot was a hoax has become a political football, with accusations flying about who knew what during a multi-agency probe.
Peter Dutton cried ‘nonsense’ on Tuesday after Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke claimed the Opposition leader missed key briefings on the discovery of a caravan loaded with explosives in Dural, in Sydney‘s northwest, in January.
‘It’s complete and utter nonsense,’ Mr Dutton told reporters on Tuesday.
He said the Coalition sought a briefing from police on January 22, and then a week later.
‘At no time during those briefings, or my discussions with the director general of ASIO, including up to and including on the 18th of February, was there any mention whatsoever of a hoax.
‘The Prime Minister needs to answer questions about when he was advised of this being a hoax.’
Shadow Minister for Home Affairs James Paterson also took to social media to confirm the opposition was briefed by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) on January 30.
The caravan in question was revealed to be a ‘criminal con job’ by AFP Deputy Commissioner Krissy Barrett on Monday.
Peter Dutton (pictured) told reporters on Tuesday that criticism from the Home Affairs Minister is ‘complete and utter nonsense’
The plan by perpetrators was to buy a van, rig it with explosives and anti-Semitic materials and then inform law enforcement about a terrorist attack, Ms Barrett said.
‘The caravan was never going to cause a mass casualty event,’ she said.
‘We believe the person pulling the strings wanted changes to their criminal status, but maintained a distance from their scheme and hired alleged local criminals to carry out parts of their plan.’
After the announcement, the home affairs minister accused Mr Dutton of stirring up fear about anti-Semitic attacks while police carried out their probe into the caravan.
‘The revelations… show that Peter Dutton has played directly into the hands of organised crime figures who have been trying to profit from dividing our community,’ Mr Burke said on social media.
‘If you don’t care about the facts, if you don’t care about inflicting unwarranted fear and blame on our community, you can’t be trusted with national security.’
Mr Burke then doubled down on his comments on Tuesday, telling the ABC the opposition leader did not attend briefings with AFP on the investigation.
‘And so what we had was a situation where, quite deliberately, Peter Dutton made a decision to not find out the facts from the Australian Federal Police, to ignore the advice from ASIO in lowering the temperature, simply because it suited his self-promotion ambitions,’ he said.
The opposition leader was asked whether he regretted his tough language on the caravan now that it was revealed to be a hoax, to which he said no.
Australian Federal Police said the caravan, which was found loaded with explosives, was ‘never going to cause a mass casualty event’
On Monday, 14 people were charged with 65 offences related to the anti-Semitic incidents across Sydney’s east
The plot was initially believed to be linked to anti-Semitic attacks after a note was found inside the caravan with the addresses of Jewish people and a synagogue.
It also included the words: ‘F*** the Jews.’
NSW Police Deputy Commissioner David Hudson told reporters on Monday the plot and other alleged hate crimes were not motivated by anti-Semitism but ‘carried out by criminals’.
‘It was about causing chaos within the community, causing threat, causing angst, diverting police resources away from their day jobs.’
Executive Council of Australian Jewry’s co-chief executive Alex Ryvchin told Daily Mail Australia the community is still processing the information.
‘The Jewish community now has to contend with anti-Semitism emanating from violent criminal gangs as well as familiar ideological and political sources,’ he said.
‘There is also strong concern in the community that the characterisation of the Dural incident as a ‘hoax’ has led to the denial or diminishing of the severity of the anti-Semitism crisis and has empowered dark, conspiratorial elements of our society.
‘It is critical that governments and law enforcement continue to treat anti-Semitism as the grave and persistent threat that it is.’
NSW Police Deputy Commissioner David Hudson said the caravan plot and other alleged hate crimes were not motivated by anti-Semitism but ‘carried out by criminals’
On Monday, AFP and NSW Police announced that 14 people have been charged with a total of 65 offences related to the anti-Semitic incidents across Sydney’s east between October and February.
Those charged are aged between 18 and 41 and were arrested after warrants and firearm prohibition orders were executed at premises across the city.
The arrests were made as part of Strike Force Pearl, an ongoing investigation into incidents from November 2024 to January 2025, which included racist graffiti and firebombings of cars.
Some of the arrests were connected to Strike Force Kissinger’s investigation into the explosives found in the caravan in Dural.
NSW Police no longer believe there is any ongoing threat to the community from a terrorist act, as had been feared when the caravan was discovered.
