Joseph "Jihad Jack" Terrence Thomas
Born1973
Criminal chargeTerrorism-related offenses
Criminal penalty5 years in prison with a non-parole period of 2 years (later overturned on appeal)

Joseph "Jihad Jack" Terrence Thomas (born 1973) is an Australian citizen who undertook pistol, light firearm and demolition training with Al-Qaeda. Osama Bin Laden visited his training camp three times while he was in attendance and he shook hands with him. He was convicted for receiving funds from Al-Qaeda, which was later overturned on appeal. Thomas, commonly referred to in Australian media as "Jihad Jack", was acquitted of providing resources that would assist in a terrorist act before becoming the first Australian to be placed under a control order under the Australian Anti-Terrorism Act 2005.

Terrorism conviction

Thomas' brother Les speaks at an anti-war rally.

Joseph Terrence Thomas was the first Australian to be convicted under anti-terrorism laws introduced in Australia after the 11 September 2001 attacks in the United States.[1] He was sentenced on 31 March 2006 to five years prison with a non-parole period of two years.[2] Thomas's lawyer, Rob Stary, described the not guilty verdicts on the more serious charges as a "significant victory".

Attorney-General of Australia Philip Ruddock said after news of the conviction,

The convictions of Mr. Thomas for the terrorist offence and the offence related to passport manipulation demonstrate the seriousness with which these issues are dealt with by the law and highlights the consequences of becoming involved in these activities.[1]

This was in relation to his travels to Pakistan and Afghanistan, after he married and converted to Islam. Thomas left Australia for Pakistan on 23 March 2001, and returned home on 6 June 2003. Since his arrest, Thomas has been referred to in the media as "Jihad Jack". When he converted to Islam the self described Aussie battler took on the name Jihad, Arabic for struggle.[3][4]

Conviction overturned

The trial was highly controversial, as the evidence used to prosecute Thomas consisted solely of an interview conducted in a Pakistani military prison.[3] Despite claims that the evidence was obtained under duress and that Thomas had been tortured, the judge deemed the interview to be admissible. The conviction was overturned on appeal by the Victorian Court of Appeal in the case of R v Thomas, with the appeals judges ruling that the trial judge should have ruled the evidence inadmissible.[5][6]

Control order

On 28 August 2006, following the quashing of the convictions, Thomas was the first person to be issued with a control order under the Australian Anti-Terrorism Act 2005 after written consent was provided by the Australian Attorney-General Philip Ruddock.[7] The control order places the following restrictions on Thomas:

  • He must abide by a curfew, confining him to his home from midnight until 5am each morning.[8]
  • He is restricted in the phone services he is allowed to operate (one mobile phone, one land line) and must have these approved by the Australian Federal Police. He is prohibited from using public pay phones.[9]
  • He is required to seek written approval to make telephone calls.[10]
  • He is not to communicate with a list of persons identified as terrorists including Osama bin Laden,[11] Ayman al-Zawahiri and Abu Musab al-Zarqawi[12]
  • He must agree to be fingerprinted.
  • He must not leave Australia.

Australian federal magistrate Graham Mowbray made the assessment that Thomas is capable of launching a terrorist attack and that his wife has links to the alleged spiritual leader of Jemaah Islamiah, Abu Bakar Bashir.[11] Thomas and his wife have stated that his wife was a friend of a friend of the woman who became Bashir's wife.[13] Sidney Jones[14] of the International Crisis Group says the link is a case of mistaken identity based on surname.[15] Since granting the control order, Magistrate Mowbray has criticised the inclusion of Osama Bin Laden on the list of people with whom Thomas must not have contact. He has also criticised the timing of the order, which interrupted a holiday Thomas was having with his family.[16]

Thomas unsuccessfully appealed the making of the control order to the High Court of Australia.[17]

Retrial

On 20 December 2006, Thomas was ordered to face a retrial, based on an interview[3] with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's Four Corners television program.[18] On 23 October 2008, Thomas was found not guilty of the terrorism charges but was found guilty of a passport offence, which carries a maximum penalty of two years' imprisonment. Thomas has already served nine months. Justice Elizabeth Curtain on 29 October 2008 ordered that Thomas be imprisoned for nine months but found he was free to go after taking into account time already served. "No other penalty is appropriate in the circumstances of this case other than a sentence of imprisonment," Justice Curtain said. She ordered that Thomas be released immediately on a Commonwealth recognisance order to be of good behaviour for the five days remaining of his sentence once the 265 days of pre-sentence detention had been taken into account. He was also required to pay a $1000 bond. Thomas was represented by former Victorian Deputy Premier Jim Kennan.[19][20]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Thomas convicted under terror laws, The Age, 26 February 2006
  2. ↑ Thomas sentenced under terror laws Archived 19 May 2006 at the Wayback Machine, News.com.au, 31 March 2006
  3. 1 2 3 The Convert, Four Corners, 27 February 2006
  4. ↑ From the ABC's Four Corners program (21 August 2006). "The Transcript: What Thomas told Four Corners". The Australian. News Limited. Archived from the original on 28 August 2006. Retrieved 28 August 2006.
  5. ↑ Australian terror convictions quashed - The Australian. 18 August 2006.
  6. ↑ R v Thomas (2006) VSCA 165 18 August 2006.
  7. ↑ Michael Walton, A consolidation of the changes to the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth), Crimes Act 1914 (Cth) & Australian Security Intelligence Organisation Act 1979 (Cth) proposed in the Anti-Terrorism Bill 2005 (Cth) Archived 28 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine, NSW Council for Civil Liberties, 16 October 2005
  8. ↑ "Curfew order for Jack Thomas". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax. 28 August 2006. Retrieved 28 August 2006.
  9. ↑ Helen Brown; et al. (28 August 2006). "Transcript: Govt places curfew on Jack Thomas". Lateline. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 29 August 2006.
  10. ↑ ABC staff (28 August 2006). "Thomas family vows to fight control order". ABC online. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 29 August 2006.
  11. 1 2 Tom Allard (29 August 2006). "Jihad Jack wife's terror link". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax. Retrieved 29 August 2006.
  12. ↑ Mark Dunn (29 August 2006). "Curfew after terrorism acquittal". The Courier-Mail. News Limited. Retrieved 29 August 2006.
  13. ↑ Stephen Fitzpatrick; Natasha Robinson (31 August 2006). "Jihad Jack's wife denies link to Bashir". The Australian. News Limited. Archived from the original on 2 September 2006. Retrieved 31 August 2006.
  14. ↑ Sidney Jones biography Archived 29 August 2006 at the Wayback Machine from the International Crisis Group website
  15. ↑ Ian Munro; Mark Forbes; Nick McKenzie (31 August 2006). "Jihad Jack's JI link: six words in a hotel". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax. Retrieved 31 August 2006.
  16. ↑ AAP (31 August 2006). "Bin Laden link 'silly'". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax. Retrieved 31 August 2006.
  17. ↑ ABC staff (5 December 2006). "Anti-terrorism control orders unconstitutional, High Court hears". ABC online. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 5 December 2006.
  18. ↑ ABC staff (20 December 2006). "Thomas to face retrial on terrorism charges". ABC online. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 12 January 2007. Retrieved 20 December 2006.
  19. ↑ R v Thomas [2008] VSC 620 (29 October 2008), Supreme Court (Vic, Australia).
  20. ↑ Sarah-Jane Collins (29 October 2008). "Jack Thomas spared further jail time". The Age. Retrieved 30 October 2008.
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