ASIO chief reveals how a rookie spy foiled Christmas terror plot

The nation’s spy boss has revealed how a rookie ASIO officer helped thwart what would have been Australia’s worst terrorist attack.

Ibrahim Abbas, his brother Hamza, cousin Abudllah Chaarani and friend Ahmed Mohamed were all involved in the plot.

The nation’s spy boss has revealed how a rookie ASIO officer helped thwart what would have been Australia’s worst terrorist attack.

The female officer spotted a group of young men visiting a chemist shop late at night to gather bomb-making chemicals.

Spy chief, Duncan Lewis told the Australian how the officer’s 11th hour tip helped foil the jihad-inspired Christmas plot to inflict mass carnage in Melbourne.

“The Christmas crowds were gathering and as a result of the ­exertions of a young ASIO officer — a young woman who had been with us for about five minutes — one of our analysts, had noticed a group of young men forming in an unusual way and going to a chemist shop late at night,” Mr Lewis, the ASIO ­director-general, said.

“They were in fact picking up the precursors for explosives. That was all the lead we needed.”

The trio of wannabe terrorists pulled faces and laughed as they were found guilty of planning a devastating terror attack in the heart of Melbourne’s CBD.

Almost two weeks after verdicts were delivered it can finally be revealed that the group were found guilty of plotting with co-conspirator Ibrahim Abbas, 24, who confessed to wanting to slaughter scores of innocent Aussies as payback for Australia’s war on Islamic State’s terror army.

He planned to stage the attack around Melbourne’s Federation Square, with St Paul’s Cathedral and Flinders St Station identified as possible attack sites.

Ibrahim pleaded guilty to planning an attack while his brother Hamza Abbas, cousin Abdullah Chaarani and friend Ahmed Mohamed, denied any involvement.

But a Supreme Court jury found the three of them guilty of an identical charge earlier this month followinga ten-week trial.

Bomb making materials found at the houses of one of the accused. Picture: Supplied

The Daily Telegraph has been prevented from publishing the verdicts after lawyers for two of the men applied to have them suppressed for legal reasons.

The application was refused by Justice Christopher Beale but was immediately appealed.

The Court of Appeal yesterday dismissed that appeal meaning the verdicts can now be made public.

The jury had deliberated for a week before handing down their unanimous verdicts.

Supporters in the public gallery remained silent after a stern warning from Justice Christopher Beale about appropriate court behaviour.

Other supporters watched on from a nearby anteroom after being banned from wearing niqabs in court.

The group spent months planning the homegrown attack in which they planned to use machetes to kill members of the public before detonating suicide vests.

The men purchased chemicals, explosive substances and other components to make a bomb, bought bladed weapons and conducted reconnaissance in the CBD.

Flinders Street station, Federation Square and St Paul's Cathedral were looked at as sites for the attack. Picture: Mark Stewart

They had tried making homemade bombs with materials bought from Bunnings and Chemist Warehouse and tested their handiwork during a series of trips to rural areas.

Ibrahim later admitted they were too stupid to make the bombs work despite trying to follow an instructional video.

“We couldn’t really follow the video properly, like, it wasn’t — I couldn’t — um, I wasn’t able to make a bomb with the hydrogen peroxide,” he said.

The key witness in the trial, Ibrahim insisted he was the ringleader and architect of the plan and his co-conspirators hapless sidekicks with little involvement.

He described himself as Jesus and the trio as his disciples, saying he worked tirelessly to convince them to take part in an attack but they weren’t interested. It was a story the jury didn’t buy.

The group was arrested on December 22, 2016, after months of surveillance by anti-terror police.

Ibrahim, who told the court of his plan in chilling detail, had urged the group to act by Christmas Day of that year.

“I wanted to make sure that the casualties would be high”.