High Court decision: Sex fiends, killers among detainees on the streets

Immigration Minister Andrew Giles confirms several sex offenders and three murderers are among the 81 people released, now living in the community.

Immigration Minister Andrew Giles on Tuesday. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Several sex offenders and three murderers are among the 81 people who have been freed from immigration detention following a landmark High Court ruling, with some having committed “disgusting crimes” and who hurt people still living in Australia.

Under pressure to explain what Labor is doing to keep Australians safe, Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil and Immigration Minister Andrew Giles revealed on Tuesday that detainees who committed the most serious crimes had to report daily to the government.

Mr Giles confirmed 81 detainees had now been released after the High Court decision, which overturned a 20-year precedent allowing the commonwealth to detain non-citizens indefinitely under certain circumstances.

“I believe there are three murderers, there are several sex offenders,” Mr Giles said in question time in response to deputy Liberal leader Sussan Ley, who asked how many convicted pedophiles, murderers and rapists were among the cohort.

The minister suggested some of the people who had been released were pedophiles and would be on a child sex offenders register, which restricted where they could live.

Ms Ley said the freed detainees included “a pedophile who raped a 10-year-old boy, a hitman who murdered a pregnant woman and blew up her body with military-grade explosives, and a violent sex predator who attacks elderly women in their home”.

The freed detainees will receive healthcare and welfare services to help them transition into the community, including short-term accommodation and income support.

Individuals who were detained in a different location to their home or family will also be supported to relocate.

Amid mounting calls for the government to come up with a “legislative fix”, Mr Giles said advice on legislation was sought “immediately after” the High Court’s decision.

He later clarified the government had also sought advice prior to the ruling on options based on “various outcomes”.

Opposition immigration spokesman Dan Tehan appealed to the government to tell the public where the “hardcore criminals” were living and how many rapists and pedophiles were among the 81 released detainees.

“The Coalition would have, and stands ready to support emergency legislation and the sad reality is we have had to write to the government seeking a briefing rather than them coming to us seeking support for their legislative fix,” Mr Tehan said.

“Minister Giles has confirmed the government was completely asleep at the wheel in his initial response to a question regarding when they started considering a legislative fix, which was after the High Court made its decision.”

Ms O’Neil told parliament the government argued against the release of the detainees, adding: “Some of these people have committed disgusting crimes. Disgusting crimes. Some of them have hurt people who are still here in our country, and it is those victims that we care about.

“I can tell the parliament that there is one single focus and one single priority that we are using to manage the implications of the High Court’s decision and that is the community safety of the Australian citizens who elect us to this parliament.”

Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil on Tuesday. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Western Australian Premier Roger Cook expressed his concern about the release of immigration detainees with criminal records, saying all 32 individuals freed from the state’s Yongah Hill Immigration Detention Centre had been assessed by police and seven were on control orders.

“It’s frustrating that we now have this situation where these detainees, 32 in Western Australia, have been released into the community,” Mr Cook said. “And police are working with federal agencies and in this case Border Force to understand the risk associated, if there are any risks at all.”

In a joint statement, Ms O’Neil and Mr Giles said border protection and law enforcement agencies “have been working to make sure that the toughest possible conditions are placed on these individuals”.

“Individuals required to be released by the High Court as a result of this decision have been subject to a range of strict, mandatory visa conditions. Such conditions include restricting types of employment, requiring regular reporting to authorities, and requiring released detainees to report their personal details including their social media profiles, which we are actively monitoring,” the ministers said.

Recently released detainee Aliyawar Yawari, pictured outside the Perth City Motel, has a record of attacking elderly women in their own home. Picture: Paul Garvey

“Additionally, the government has imposed daily reporting requirements for those with the most serious criminal history. The government will also continue to work around the clock with agencies and law enforcement to uphold the safety of our community.”

State, territory and federal authorities may also impose additional restrictions on released detainees.

“For example, in one state, a person who has been placed on an apprehended violence order is prohibited from residing at the family home, is not allowed within a certain distance from the protected person’s residence, work or school, and is not allowed to contact a protected person except through the use of a lawyer,” Ms O’Neil and Mr Giles said.

Sirul Azhar Umar was released as a result of the High Court ruling.

“The government is exploring further measures, including legislative and regulatory options, to ensure community safety as we work through the implications of the High Court’s decision, noting the court is yet to hand down its reasons.”

Defending the Albanese government’s response to the decision, the ministers noted Australian Federal Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw briefed his state and territory counterparts in person on the outcome of the High Court’s decision, including on the expected numbers of individuals required to be released in each jurisdiction.

Operation AEGIS – run by the Australian Border Force and Australian Federal Police – has been established to manage the overall response of federal agencies and state and territory police.

“This operation was established before any individuals other than the plaintiff in the High Court case had been released. This has ensured that people who are being released as required by the High Court are moved into state and territory post-offending programs where appropriate,” the ministers said. “Each offender is being case-managed and the AFP and ABF are providing updates.”

The cohort of immigration detainees released across Australia since Friday include people whose refugee status is yet to be determined. Many were detained because Australia intends to deport them under a strengthened character test legislated in 2018.

Those people are foreign nationals or asylum-seekers whose visas were cancelled by the immigration minister of the day after they were found guilty of committing crimes while living in the Australian community.