Monica Smit: Anti-vax activist to fight $86,000 unlawful fundraiser allegations

A prominent anti-vaccination activist has revealed plans to fight allegations she ran an unlawful fundraiser to pay her legal bills.

Anti-lockdown activist Monica Smit will fight allegations she broke fundraising laws to pay her legal bills, a court has been told.

Ms Smit, 35, and her organisation Reignite Democracy Australia on Monday appeared in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court where the case was set down for a contested hearing.

Appearing via a videolink from Queensland, Ms Smit smiled and began waving at the court when the case was called.

Prosecutor Alex Cameron, representing Consumer Affairs Victoria, told the court that efforts to resolve the case had failed and it would need to be decided by a magistrate.

“The main issue is the meaning of a fundraiser in this context … that’s the sole issue here,” he said.

Monica Smit rose to become a leading figure in Victoria’s anti-lockdown movement. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Wayne Taylor

Mr Cameron told the court that charges were laid against Ms Smit and her organisation because the pair were “effectively” one and the same.

Consumer Affairs Victoria launched the legal proceedings against Ms Smit and Reignite Democracy Australia, of which she serves as director, under the Fundraising Act, which requires all organisations conducting fundraisers to register unless exempt.

It’s alleged Ms Smit and the organisation had not registered when more than $86,000 was raised between September 2021 and October 2022 to fund her legal defence on unrelated criminal charges.

It’s further alleged she failed to provide the authority with documents and information required under fundraising laws.

Her organisation, Reignite Democracy Australia, describes itself as dedicated to ‘unite Australians in actively maintaining our individual and collective liberty’. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Geraghty

Ms Smit rose to prominence within the anti-vaccination and anti-lockdown protest movement when the Victorian government declared a state of emergency during the Covid-19 pandemic.

She spent 22 days in custody after refusing to agree to bail conditions in late 2021 when she was accused of inciting others to breach public health orders and attend protests – charges that were later dropped.

In May last year, she was found guilty but did not receive convictions on two charges of breaching public health orders.

In court, Ms Smit’s lawyer, Gareth Rogers, said they were ready to fight the allegations over a half-day hearing.

Ms Smit, who took notes and talked to someone off screen, raised her hand to say she was “travelling for the next four months”.

But when a date in April was suggested for the hearing, Ms Smit said she could “make that work”.

The campaigner regularly shared videos of her confronting police over the public health orders during Victoria’s lockdowns. Picture: Supplied

After Consumer Affairs Victoria charged Ms Smit in October last year, she shared a video on social media, saying she had “nothing to hide” and labelling it a waste of taxpayer money.

“I just want to tell them; ‘thank you so much because I was getting a bit bored’,” she said.

“You’ve just given me something else to concentrate on because things like just don’t bother me guys … all these people know I’m coming after them for what happened to me.

“This doesn’t faze me and I’m going to fight it as long as I need to.”

If proven, the offences carry a maximum penalty of $46,000 for a company and more than $23,000 and 12 months jail for individuals.