Release of ‘tinnie terrorist’ Shayden Thorne sparks row

The release of a convicted terrorist has sparked a political row, with Premier Mark McGowan warning that he has not reformed.

Shayden Thorne pleaded guilty to preparing for a foreign incursion. Picture: Supplied

The release from jail of a convicted terrorist has sparked a political row, with West Australian Premier Mark McGowan warning that the man has not reformed and ­accusing Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton of not doing enough to monitor him.

Shayden Thorne was jailed last year after plotting to help overthrow the government of The Philippines and install sharia law. Thorne, the brother of jailed radical preacher Junaid Thorne, was also imprisoned in 2011 over terror-related offences in Saudi Arabia.

Mr McGowan said he was “bloody angry” about the situation and criticised Mr Dutton for failing to take more action that could have seen Thorne kept in custody or released with stricter supervision requirements, such as an ankle tracking bracelet.

Mr McGowan said the government released Thorne “and they weren’t going to put any conditions on him”. “We’ve had to ensure that they actually take some action now and then they haven’t put a tracker on him. It’s wrong, it’s outrageous,” he said.

The West Australian government had learned of Thorne’s ­impending release last week, with Attorney-General John Quigley contacting his federal counterpart, Christian Porter, in an effort to impose additional conditions.

But a push by Western Australia for the government to extend Thorne’s time in custody through the imposition of a “continuing detention order” was unsuccessful. Australian Federal Police instead secured a lesser interim control order.

Mr McGowan said the federal government had taken action only after intervention from his state. “Peter Dutton talks the talk when it comes to this terrorism stuff but he doesn’t walk the walk, because this is a prime example of when they should have done more,” he said.

Thorne, 32, was jailed for three years and 10 months over his part in a plot to sail a small fishing boat from Cape York in Queensland to The Philippines as one of a gang that became known as the “tinnie terrorists”. He has not been granted parole but is being released as his sentence was backdated to his arrest in 2016.

Mr McGowan said it was clear that Thorne had not reformed.

“His behaviours in trying to go to The Philippines to try to foment some sort of jihadist revolution was just unbelievable,” he said. “He is going to be wandering around now with barely any conditions attached to him.”

The AFP settled on seeking an interim control order after receiving legal advice from the Australian Government Solicitor that there was insufficient evidence to support a continuing detention order application.

A spokeswoman for Mr Dutton said the minister had consented to the interim control order application, given the high bar for securing tougher conditions.

“The legal thresholds relating to continuing detention are high. A Supreme Court must be satisfied to a high degree of probability that the offender poses an unacceptable risk of committing a serious terrorism offence if released,” the spokeswoman said.

The interim control order granted by the Federal Court last week includes a host of conditions, including orders barring him from accessing dozens of different social media and messaging platforms and preventing him from contact with a host of individuals. He is only allowed to use a single SIM card provided by the AFP and will report to police twice a week.