Junming Zhou pleads guilty to using fake gun in “military exercise training” in Bundeena

A Chinese national dressed up in army camo gear and took fake gel blaster guns to the Royal National Park to practice his “military exercises” so he could fight in the Ukraine-Russia war.

A Chinese national has admitted to dressing in army gear and firing fake gel guns in the Royal National Park in what he claimed were “military exercises” for training to fight for Ukraine in the war.

Junming Zhou, 32, pleaded guilty to multiple charges in Sutherland Local Court on the day he was scheduled to defend the allegations at hearing.

Agreed facts tendered to court said Zhou travelled from Sydney via train then caught a ferry to Bundeena where he walked to the nearby Jibbon Beach to conduct “military exercises” on August 14, last year.

He used a military-style gel blaster rifle and fired ammunition from it.

Junming Zhou was released on bail in August last year. Picture: Ashleigh Tullis

A woman was running past and saw he was holding the gun, wearing camouflage army fatigues and a helmet and was taking a photo of himself.

“You aren’t going to shoot me are you?” the woman said to which Zhou replied, “it’s a drill” before she called the police.

Officers found Zhou holding the replica rifle with matching magazine and gel ammunition, telling them he bought it two years ago from Queensland.

Zhou told them he went to Bundeena to do training so he could join the “Ukraine international allegiance” to fight against Russia.

Police later searched his Kensington home and seized a second bolt-action rifle gel blaster and found a video of Zhou firing the gel blaster in the Royal National Park.

Zhou pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing an unregistered prohibited firearm, possessing a loaded firearm in a public place, not keeping a firearm safely and possessing ammunition without a licence.

Zhou was referred to hospital for a mental health assessment following his arrest before he returned to court and was granted bail on August 16.

Police attended his home for a bail compliance check on October 17 and when officers tried to search and restrain Zhou, he ran head first into a heavy wall and struck his head against it repeatedly.

Zhou will be sentenced in Sutherland Local Court next month.

Zhou resisted police putting handcuffs on him but once on, he struck his head with the chain causing a laceration and did not willingly get into the caged vehicle.

Once outside his apartment, Zhou would not remain on the ground, screamed, spat at and tried to bite the officers.

“There will be bodies in your police station, I will remember you, I will kill you,” he told officers.

“I will kill … I have the thirst for blood … I remember you all … I will kill myself in front of your police station … I will have my blood on your uniform”.

Zhou then kicked a constable in the leg and he needed to be restrained again before being sedated and taken to hospital.

He pleaded guilty to three charges of resisting, intimidating and assaulting police officers.

In court, defence lawyer Dean Fernandez said Zhou had no criminal history and a history of mental health relating to PTSD from his childhood in China and also suffered from major depressive episodes.

The court heard immigration authorities would take Zhou to Villawood Detention Centre because his bridging visa was cancelled once he was released from custody where he had been on remand for five months.

The case was adjourned for sentence to April 3 after Zhou had a mental health breakdown during the sentencing hearing and needed to be escorted from the audiovisual suite in prison.