Martin Thomas Glynn: Public tip off leads police to Perth man accused of spreading anti-Semitic hate online

The arrest of a Perth man, with an alleged cache of guns, ammunition and bomb-making shopping list in his south Perth home, was triggered by a public tip off. WA Police Commissioner Col Blanch said on Wednesday a member of the public had raised the alarm about “unacceptable, abhorrent” comments allegedly posted on Instagram by 39-year-old Martin Thomas Glynn. Officers from the State Security Investigation Group twice raided Mr Glynn’s Yangebup home on Tuesday, as part of Operation Dalewood. The operation was launched after the worst terrorist attack on Australian soil and claimed the lives of 15 innocent victims. Mr Glynn appeared in the Fremantle Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, on charges of conduct intended to racially harass, carrying or possessing a prohibited weapon and failing to store a firearm or related thing in compliant storage. He allegedly took to Instagram endorsing the Bondi massacre just hours after the shooting on December 14, prosecutors told the court. “I just want to say, I, Marty Thomas Glynn, 100 per cent support the two New South Wales shooters RIGHT TO SELF DEFENCE AGAINST JEWS AND ALL FUTURE JEWS,” he allegedly wrote in a social media post. “If you think this is an outrage, show me a single day where Jews killed less than 10 Palestinians. I stand by this and everything I saw... what did they expect if they killed 500,000 Palestinians?” Mr Blanch said neither State or Federal police had had prior warnings about Mr Glynn prior to the tip off. He said police believe Mr Glynn was working alone and there was no threat to the community. Officers were continuing to work on downloading data from devices they confiscated when they searched him home. “We don’t think there is an ongoing threat, we don’t believe there to be a network involved,” Mr Blanch said. “We think this is an individual who has made these comments online and we are still yet to assess the threat of that individual, but we have taken action for the exact reason that the community would expect us to. “These comments are totally unacceptable, abhorrent and have been reported as such by members of our own community.” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Wednesday that AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett and WA Acting Premier Rita Saffioti had told him about Mr Glynn’s arrest, and that there was no place in Australia for anti-Semitism, hate and violent ideologies. Ms Saffioti and Police Minister Reece Whitby also met with local Jewish leaders on Wednesday morning. “I’ve spoken to the Deputy Premier and have spoken to leaders of the Jewish community this morning, the commissioner has been in touch with the Jewish security group,” Mr Whitby said. “The response that I got back was of incredible gratefulness that this action has been so prompt and has been taken. “Yes, our Jewish community is suffering, (it is) still in shock from what happened in Bondi beach, this just proves and shows again, we cannot rest. “A comment online, words are dangerous, words have potential to lead to catastrophic outcomes, this is why we have to be serious about this and anyone that says anything remotely intimidating or suggesting violence needs to be acted on very quickly.” Ms Saffiotti said the Prime Minister had wanted to “make sure that he was in touch with what was happening”. She said he had “again reiterated the message that we’re sending today is that the whole community has to stand together against anti-Semitic behaviour and extremism in the community”. The Magistrate’s court heard that police who searched Mr Glynn’s home allegedly found six registered rifles, 4000 rounds of ammunition, a flick knife. They also found a notebook labelled “ideology, views, insights and political ideas” and allegedly also made references to the Holocaust, including quotes that “Jews have always been scum ... we don’t want them near us or our family”. Mr Blanch said the firearms were owned legally under a hunting licence, but added one would have needed to be surrendered when WA’s tougher new gun law reforms were fully implemented. He said police had ramped up their presence in the community since the Bondi massacre as part of Operation Dalewood. “We have taken a number of actions, and in some cases, preventative actions, where we are going to look for concerns that they (community members) might have,” he said. “Again, our community of Western Australia, ring up Crime Stoppers, 131 333 000, if you see something of concern, we’re going to go and look, we’re going to take swift action, because we don’t want to repeat a Bondi here in Western Australia.”