Victorian neo-Nazi Jacob Hersant taunts NSW Police over wasting taxpayer funds

A prominent white supremacist has issued a statement taunting police and gloating about wasting taxpayer dollars.

A prominent white supremacist has released a statement flouting NSW Police, after a group of neo-Nazis led a series of highly-condemned demonstrations across Sydney on the Australia Day long weekend.

Jacob Hersant, who is facing up to a year in jail for making the Nazi salute outside a courtroom, issued a statement gloating about wasting “millions of dollars” in police resources.

“We have cost the state unfathomable amounts in resources and legitimacy. We have received great publicity for our movement,” Hersant shared on Telegram just after midnight on Monday.

The video clip uploaded to Telegram did not reveal any of the group's faces. Picture: Telegram

The group of men, one carrying an Australian flag, boarded a train on Australia Day dressed entirely in black. Picture: Supplied

“The NSW Police will have spent millions of dollars this Australia Day weekend on us alone. They had the police helicopter, Raptor Squad, Riot Squad, regular police members and senior police members chase around 70 racists for 96 hours.”

The statement was shared under a video of members of the Victorian arm of the National Socialist Network (NSN) aboard a bus, leaving NSW, allegedly accompanied by four NSW Police cars.

The video featured the busload of men, filmed from the back with no faces on screen, singing a racist song that protested against immigration and included the lyrics “soldiers of our blood” and “fighters of our nation”.

The statement was issued by Victorian neo-Nazi Jacob Hersant. Picture: NCA NewsWire/ Nicki Connolly

The train was slowed and the group detained at North Sydney station. Picture: Transport for NSW.

Hersant also claimed the weekend was a “massive propaganda triumph” and said the members would not be paying the fines administered by officers.

“We’re sure this hurts the taxpayer generally more than it did us as individuals, as we will not be paying a single dollar of these fines handed out to us merely because we’re political activists with a view the government has made it fashionable to target,” he wrote.

“We are growing and they are scared. That is why the system is resorting to naked, brute force in an attempt to keep the white majority scared and scattered.”

The statement follows three neo-Nazi demonstrations held across Sydney during the Australia Day long weekend.

On Friday, a group of about 61 balaclava-clad men dressed in black attempted to travel from Artarmon to the city before they were intercepted by police. The group was issued with 61 infringement notices for offensive behaviour.

On Sunday morning, another group of about 20 masked men in black descended on Artarmon Reserve, with police containing the group and issuing some members with a public safety order.

A group of neo-Nazis at Artarmon Reserve on Sunday. Picture: Twitter

NSW Premier Chris Minns has continued to denounce the actions of the neo-Nazi group, saying police had the authority to unmask their identities.

Commenting on their threat to not pay their fines, he said offending NSN members would be subjected to further legal action.

“I’m not going to prejudge that process, but it’s not optional – it doesn’t matter where you live,” he said.

Mr Minns also doubled down on the government’s intentions to ban the Nazi salute, depending on the outcome of a case before the courts.

While it’s illegal to knowingly display a Nazi symbol in public without a reasonable excuse, the case will set a precedent over whether this applies to hand gestures as well.

“I’ll be looking at that case really closely,” he said.

“But I want to make it clear that if that legal barrier isn’t cleared, we will move legislation to outlaw racist Nazi ideology and white power symbols.

“In NSW, people have every right to feel safe in their community.”

Opposition Leader Mark Speakman indicated his support for the move if the laws didn’t go far enough.

“We would certainly want to work with the government in outlawing Nazi salutes,” he said.

“The federal parliament has legislated to criminalise Nazi salutes, so it may not be necessary to have our own laws in NSW, but we don’t see any harm in doing so.”

NSW Premier Chris Minns said NSW Police had the power to expose neo-Nazis. Picture: NCA NewsWire/ Justin Lloyd.

While Police Minister Yasmin Catley wasn’t able to say how far in advance police were aware of the plans of the NSN prior to Friday’s demonstrations – due to police operations – she commended the work of officers on the ground.

“Their swift action saw what was the best outcome – diverting those men away from the city, where we know that’s where they wanted to go to disrupt what was a wonderful celebration for the hundreds of thousands of people in the city, and I cannot thank them enough,” she said.