By Erin Pearson
A man accused of violent disorder after confronting neo-Nazi gatecrashers at an anti-fascist fundraiser in Melbourne’s inner-north has had his prosecution abandoned by police.
Benjamin Squire had been facing jail time after he was charged over a melee that broke out when he and others asked 20 balaclava-clad neo-Nazis to leave a queer-friendly bar in Thornbury.
Thornbury bar Cafe Gummo.Credit: Jason South
Squire told this masthead he was glad justice had prevailed.
“I am disgusted to have been the only person charged, with not a single neo-Nazi would-be attacker so much as formally questioned or charged,” Squire said.
“Victoria Police should be concerned about white supremacists linked to terrorists such as the Christchurch shooter... yet, they continue to protect and escort them through our streets.”
The court had previously heard that a group of about 20 far–right activists had formed a line outside Cafe Gummo on an August night in 2023.
Inside, dozens of patrons had gathered to raise money for anti-fascist research group White Rose Society and Indigenous rights organisation Black Peoples Union.
When members of the neo-Nazi National Socialist Network [NSN] arrived at the venue, they “arranged themselves on the street”, sporting red, flashing cameras pinned to their chests.
The court heard that as the men formed a line outside, Squire and others approached them and asked that they leave.
Police had previously alleged that those inside the bar then chased the balaclava-clad men down the street, some arming themselves with metal chairs. A window was broken in the fracas.
The court was told police were aware the venue owner had received threats from far-right groups for previously holding fundraisers for queer and trans groups.
On Tuesday, police prosecutors withdrew the charges and the state was ordered to pay Squire’s defence costs.
Defence lawyer Luke McMahon said his client should never have been charged, with the prosecution doomed from day one.
He said it was extraordinary to learn his client was the only person charged over the incident with zero neo-Nazis arrested.
“Can you imagine if these guys were of the Islamic faith? I tell you what, they’d be in a stainless-steel cell and absolutely subject to a preventative detention regime,” McMahon said.
“There is something disarming about them being Anglo to the authorities. It’s much easier to see the threat in something foreign.”
McMahon said the far-right group had a documented history of speaking about extreme violence and praise for mass murderers, including Christchurch killer Brenton Tarrant and Norwegian extremist Anders Breivik.
In October, state and federal political leaders from both major parties condemned a protest held by a group of neo-Nazis in the regional NSW town of Corowa, warning they would face police action.
At the time, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan called on the community to unite against “hate and division” after the neo-Nazis gathered in front of the town’s war memorial, and held a sign that read “white man fight back”.
The men, believed to be part of a neo-Nazi group, gather in front of the Corowa war memorial.
In November last year, Jacob Hersant was jailed for one month, but then released on appeal, after a magistrate found he had shown no remorse for performing a Nazi salute outside the County Court building in October 2023.
Outside court, he told the press he had vowed to continue performing the Nazi salute daily and argued for his right to free speech.
On Australia Day this year, men were arrested at a march in Adelaide, with some charged under South Australia’s new anti-Nazi laws.
“They’re creating public spectacles and it’s terrifying. Where does it go from here, that’s what I really worry about. There is an inevitability of something seriously violent happening,” McMahon said.
Members of Australian neo-Nazi group National Socialist Network in the Grampians.
“The failure of police to identify this [the Cafe Gummo incident] as effectively a hate crime is a failure to appreciate the danger these people pose. It speaks to the lack of understanding.”
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