GetUp in frame for Abbott posters

Police are interested in talking to far-left activists in a probe into ­offensive posters placed around Abbott’s electorate.

Warringah MP Tony Abbott. Picture: Justin Lloyd

Police are interested in talking to several “known” far-left activists as part of an investigation into ­offensive posters placed around Tony Abbott’s electorate on Sydney­’s northern beaches.

Confirmation yesterday that the investigation was now ­“advanced” came as it was revealed­ that Mr Abbott’s campaign team has given police photos of two senior GetUp organisers who have been active in the push to oust the former prime minister.

The Abbott team handed over photos from social media and other documents related to the two GetUp organisers late last week, after viewing CCTV footage released by police from the night when posters appeared on May 1.

The documents alleged that two GetUp organisers had a “close resemblance” to the two men seen in CCTV footage.

North Sydney police started investi­gating after numerous posters bearing Mr Abbott’s face with phrases including “100 % CVNT”, “COAL LOBBY” and “PELL” were adhered to the walls of shops, offices and a preschool in the Warring­ah electorate late at night.

GetUp denies its organisers were involved in placing posters on walls around Warringah, and says they were not in the area at the time.

A spokeswoman for GetUp’s national director, Paul Oosting, said it was “flat out not true” that the two men seen in CCTV footage could be its organisers.

“It very clearly was not them and we consider publication or ­reporting such baseless accu­s­ations as highly defamatory,” she said.

The Australian does not suggest the organisers were responsible for placing the anti-Abbott posters­, which have since been ­removed.

The artwork on the posters, which suddenly appeared in Manly, Seaforth and Mosman early this month, was similar to the style of artist Scott Marsh.

Marsh painted a satirical mural of Bill Shorten during last year’s Batman by-election, and another of Mr Abbott during the same-sex marriage plebiscite.

After the Shorten mural, a GetUp organiser posted a photo of it on social media, saying: “Call me if you want a chat with the artist.”

A day after the Abbott posters appeared, Marsh posted a photo of one with the caption: “The mean streets of Mosman.”

The Australian was unable to contact Marsh yesterday.

Tim James, a prominent local Liberal, said he understood police were investigating “two GetUp organisers” in connection with posters placed across Warringah.

Liberal senator Eric Abetz called on Mr Oosting to assist NSW police with their investi­g­ation, to advise if and when he first saw publicly broadcast CCTV footage of two men police want to question, and whether or not he recognised them.

Senator Abetz also urged the GetUp national director to tell police whether the two men were “GetUp operatives”.

He said Mr Oosting should confirm whether police had contacte­d GetUp about the ­matter, and what action if any he had taken if any GetUp operatives were involved.