Nurses accused of threatening to ‘kill’ Jewish patients committed for trial
Two former Sydney nurses have faced charges they threatened to kill Jewish patients on social media, with one maintaining her innocence.
Two former nurses who spoke on a social media chat forum about murdering Jewish patients under their care and sending them to hell have faced court, with one nurse maintaining her pleas of not guilty on all charges.
Sarah Abu Lebdeh was present at her mention at John Maddison Tower in Sydney on Tuesday. Her former colleague, Ahmad Rashad Nadir, did not attend and was represented by legal counsel.
The 27-year-old stood quietly in the front row of the courtroom wearing a khaki hijab and black suit. Her lawyer, Rayan Kadadi, said she would maintain her pleas of not guilty to both charges including threatening violence to a group and using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend.
The former nurse originally faced three offences, but a charge of using a carriage service to threaten to kill was dropped by prosecutors in September.
The spiel, filmed while both were on duty at Bankstown Hospital in Sydney’s southwest, took place on chat forum Chatruletka, a web platform that allows users across the world to randomly connect via video and audio with another user.
Israeli social media personality Max Veifer encountered the pair on the chat platform before they found out he was Jewish.
Mr Veifer shared the video on social media, exposing the two nurses who have since been removed from their positions at Bankstown Hospital.
Acting magistrate Clare Farnan committed Ms Abu Lebdeh for arraignment in the NSW District Court on February 2.
In a brief proceeding also before Ms Farnan, Mr Nadir – who became an Australian citizen in 2020 after having fled Afghanistan as a 12-year-old – was granted an adjournment. The 28-year-old was charged in March with using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend and possessing a prohibited drug.
He entered a plea of not guilty to the drug charge in September.
It is unknown what plea he will enter for his other charge.
His lawyer, Zemarai Khatiz, noted that if the matter wasn’t resolved on the next occasion, it would also be committed for trial to the District Court in February.
In the video, Mr Nadir is heard saying: “You (Mr Veifer) have no idea how many (Israeli people) come to this hospital … I send to Jahannam”, the Arabic translation for “hell”.
“One day your time will come. One day you’ll die the most …”
Mr Nadir’s continued bail was accepted by the court.
