A 66-year-old Queensland man has been charged with impersonating a Commonwealth public official and importing fake Australian Federal Police badges.
Members of the Queensland Police Service (QPS) arrested and charged the Cooktown man today on behalf of the Queensland Joint Counter Terrorism Team (JCTT).
Police will allege the man was a member of a group that came to police attention as a result of a video circulating through social media channels claiming to be a recording of the AFP Commissioner detailing plans to overthrow the Federal Government.
The man speaking in the video is not AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw, the AFP said in a statement today.
It will be alleged the man took delivery of a consignment of 500 counterfeit AFP badges from China. A total of 470 badges, believed to be the vast majority of the consignment, have been recovered by police.
AFP Assistant Commissioner Counter Terrorism, Scott Lee said today’s arrest reflected the seriousness of the offences.
“While there is no evidence the group had the ability to carry out any specific violent acts, the AFP and its partners take all threats of this nature seriously, and we have not hesitated to bring people before the courts to answer for their alleged criminal acts,” Assistant Commissioner Lee said.
“The AFP will continue to work with our partners to keep the Australian community safe.”
QPS Security and Counter-Terrorism Command Assistant Commissioner Debbie Platz said the QPS was proud to work with the AFP to support their investigations.
“Our agencies continue to work collaboratively not just in investigating and prosecuting offenders but also in the field of prevention and early intervention through to responding and disrupting criminal activity,” Assistant Commissioner Platz said.
“Working together in the Queensland JCTT ensures we can provide ongoing attention and resources to keep Queenslanders safe.
The man faced Cooktown Circuit Court today and was granted bail. He is next scheduled to appear on July 13th.
As part of the same investigation, a Perth man was charged in August and a Peterborough women was charged in September 2021.
