SYDNEY: Australian police charged a man Tuesday with throwing an “explosive device” with nails and ball bearings into a crowd of thousands at an Indigenous rights rally.
Police alleged that the 31-year-old man removed the device from his bag and threw it from a walkway into a crowd of more than 2,000 people in Perth, Western Australia, during the protest on Monday.
Thousands rallied for Indigenous peoples’ rights on Australia’s national holiday, Australia Day, which marks the 1788 arrival of a British fleet in Sydney Harbor.
Alerted by a member of the public, police took the man into custody and bomb response officers inspected the device, the Western Australia Police Force said in a statement.
“It was confirmed to be a homemade improvised explosive device containing a mixture of volatile and potentially explosive chemicals, with nails and metal ball bearings affixed to the exterior,” police said.
“A subsequent search of the man’s home was conducted, where it is further alleged a combination of chemicals and materials consistent with the manufacture of homemade explosives was located.”
The device did not explode and there were no injuries.
The suspect was charged with an attempt to cause harm and with making or possessing explosives under suspicious circumstances.
Man charged with throwing ‘explosive device’ into Australia Day rally
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Man charged with throwing ‘explosive device’ into Australia Day rally
- Police alleged that the 31-year-old man removed the device from his bag and threw it from a walkway into a crowd of more than 2,000 people in Perth during the protest
UK court jails Christian camp leader for drugging, sexually abusing boys
- Ruben admitted offenses relating to ill-treatment of children and sexual abuse — as well as to drugging his wife, who was volunteering at the camp, in order to avoid detection
LONDON: A court in England on Friday jailed a man for more than 31 years for drugging and sexually abusing young boys at a Christian summer camp he led last summer.
Police say they are now talking to other groups he worked with in the past as part of an ongoing investigation.
Former vet Jon Ruben, 76, was leading the camp last July, said a statement from prosecutors released after Friday’s judgment.
He laced sweets with sedatives and tricked children at the camp into eating them by encouraging them to take part in a game.
“Later on, while the boys were heavily asleep, he went into their dormitory and chose individual boys to sexually abuse them,” said prosecutors.
Volunteers at the camp in Leicestershire, central England, raised the alarm after finding the children still nauseous, drowsy and disoriented the next day.
Eight boys aged between eight and 11 were taken to hospital and Ruben was arrested.
Investigators found syringes and sedatives at the camp location.
On his devices they found indecent images of children as well as evidence he had procured tranquilizer drugs and tried to join an online paedophile network.
Ruben admitted offenses relating to ill-treatment of children and sexual abuse — as well as to drugging his wife, who was volunteering at the camp, in order to avoid detection.
A court in Leicester sentenced him on Friday to a total of 31 years and 10 months behind bars under special provisions for defendants designated by prosecutors as particularly dangerous.
Leicestershire police said the investigation into Ruben was still “very much ongoing.”
Officers are contacting schools and youth organizations in central England with whom Ruben was involved with over the past two decades.
